A Winter Hunting Trip
by Iheartninjago2010
Summary: What happens when Sierra Cartwright convinces her father and older brothers to let her accompany the boys on their annual winter hunting trip? Can the boys keep their promise to their father to look after the stubborn girl and keep her safe when she seems determined otherwise? Includes interaction with an Indian tribe and plenty of Cartwright brother/sister action.
1. Chapter 1

**Well, I finally have a good start on the next story! The first two chapters will probably be a little longer than the rest simply because there's not too much action in them. I did add a few things to my character Sierra from my last story, but I'll let you figure out what they are. I'd like to say a special thank you to everyone who reviewed my last story and to my awesome beta reader gaben! A few people have asked me about the age difference between Sierra and Little Joe so I figured I'd go ahead and say it at the beginning. Joe is 18 in this story and Sierra is 15. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bonanza or anything recognizable only Sierra and a few other characters to be introduced later on. **

**This chapter is dedicated to islaboe! I hope this story is everything that you've been looking forward to! ;-)**

**And now, on to the first chapter!**

-/-/-/-/-/-

**A Winter Hunting Trip**

**Prologue**

_The freezing wind was blowing hard, whirling the blinding white snow around which when coupled with the fact that sun was rapidly setting, making it impossible for anyone to see more than a foot in front of them. Sierra Cartwright trudged slowly through the wall of white that surrounded her on every side, her leather boots sinking into the thick blanket that covered the frozen ground. Though the tracks she left were deep, the wind seemed determined to cover all traces of her pathway as it rapidly filled in the holes almost as soon as she had removed her boot. A coughing spell hit her, leaving her breathless once it had passed. She was exhausted. Her body was already worn out from trying to fight off the illness that currently plagued her; fighting against the wind and snow had quickly zapped the little bit of energy and strength she'd had left. It didn't help much that the wet snow had settled into the metal joint of Sierra's leg brace and had frozen, adding to the girl's difficulty in limping through the heavy snowstorm. Maybe it would have been better if she had fitted the brace on underneath the pants that she'd borrowed from her older brother Joe. At least then the cloth might have kept some of the wetness away from the metal and perhaps keeping it from freezing. Wearily, she tightened her grip on the halter of the gentle gelding beside her, as if it was the only thing that was keeping her on feet. The old gelding let out a soft whiny and gently nudged the girl's shoulder. Though he was gentle, had Sierra not had a good grip on the halter, she would have fallen over on her face in the snow. _

_By then Sierra realized how foolish she was to have taken off on her own, no matter what her reasons had been. Silently, she prayed that her brothers would soon discover her missing and come after her. Then another thought hit her. Even if they were already out searching for her, there was no telling how long it would be before they found her. Not even Hoss could track her in this weather; the blinding wall of snow was making sure of that. More than likely, it would be hours before she was found. She couldn't count on finding her own way either, as she had long ago realized she was lost. _

_Wiping the sweat from her feverish forehead with the sleeve of her coat, Sierra absently reached up to pat the gelding's nose. "It's… okay… boy," she managed to wheeze out breathlessly. More than anything, she longed to stop and allow her worn out body the rest it craved; but she knew that she would never be able to get herself going again if she stopped. And besides, she knew she would run a greater risk of freezing to death sitting still than she did moving. Fighting to draw enough air to fill her lungs, Sierra continued her slow trek through the blizzard._

-/-/-/-/-

"Come on, Pa, why can't I go?" the dark haired girl pleaded, her voice turning to a whine. It was suppertime at the Ponderosa, and the entire Cartwright family had gathered around the dinner table for their evening meal. Usually, the meal was punctuated by their laughter and cheerful chattering, however, tonight the conversation was anything but cheerful.

Adam, Hoss, and Joe had spent the day gathering the necessary supplies they needed for the hunting trip that would take them from the ranch the next day. The conversation had started as the boys discussed the arrangements they had made with their father. Their little sister, Sierra, had then boldly announced that she would be joining her brothers on the trip this year, to which both Adam and Ben had both sternly protested.

However, true to her stubborn Cartwright nature, Sierra was not going to take a simple 'no' for an answer. "I'm not a baby anymore; I can look after myself, why, I can even shoot a gun almost as good as you can," Sierra pointed out, desperately trying to convince them that she should be allowed to go. She had aimed her arguments at her father, knowing that he would be the hardest to convince. Not surprisingly, Hoss and Joe had not offered a comment since she had made her announcement; instead, they sat quietly, enjoying their meal as best they could. Sierra had a sneaking suspicion though that the two of them had secretly bet on whether, she, or Adam and their father would win this discussion.

"Sierra, the boys aren't going to have fun," her father informed her, lifting a forkful of food to his mouth. "They're going to hunt game for the winter."

"I know that, but I still want to go!" Sierra Cartwright raised her voice ever so slightly as she continued to insist. "You've let me go on camping trips with them before, why won't you let me go this time?"

"Those trips were only for a couple of days and they were pretty close to home," Ben patiently reminded his stubborn daughter. Ever since her three older brothers had began making preparations for their annual hunting trip, the fifteen year old girl had determined that she was going too this year. "The boys will be gone for at least two weeks, if not longer," he continued.

"I know," Sierra replied.

"It's a long ride up to the hunting shack and most of it is over rough terrain. We'll be camping on the ground for several nights till we get there." Adam added as if he thought that difficulty of the trip would dissuade his sister from wanting to go. He failed to notice the looks exchanged by his younger brothers at his last statement; both Joe and Hoss knew that if anything, stating the difficulty of the trip would likely as not make her more determined than ever to go, no matter how much of a strain on her it would be.

"Pa, I know that!" By now, Sierra felt her temper rising. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to gain control of her anger. She knew she would never be allowed to go if she allowed her temper to get the best of her. She knew the reason for their concern though. Ever since the accident two years ago that had left her with a weak leg, Sierra had been forced to wear a brace on that leg for support. Though it had taken some time, she had finally been able to regain almost full use of the leg, but it still tired easily and often caused her great pain when overworked. Independent natured as she was, Sierra hated the fact that she often had to rely on her family for help with tasks that would have been fairly simple for her to accomplish prior to her accident, often allowing her explosive temper to get the best of her.

Once Sierra felt that she had regained a sufficient handle on her temper, she continued her pleading. "I can handle it, Pa. I want to help out. I can be a big help, I know I can."

"What about school?" Ben asked her.

"I've been working ahead, so I've already done all my work for the next several weeks," Sierra informed her father. She had known that he would try and use school as an excuse for her not being able to go and she was proud that she had thought ahead. Ben looked slightly surprised and turned to exchange glances with Adam.

"The last thing we need on a hunting trip is a squeamish female," Adam remarked.

"I am not 'a squeamish female'," Sierra protested, shooting her oldest brother the darkest look she could muster. To her frustration, he didn't seem to notice.

"You're a girl," Adam stated the obvious, as if he thought that she had somehow forgotten. Unnoticed by their family, Joe and Hoss exchanged glances at their oldest brother's choice of words. It was common knowledge that Sierra Cartwright resented the fact that most people believed girls to be less capable of performing certain tasks that were considered to be boy's work. Any such accusation only resulted in making her more determined to do whatever task it was. If Adam had somehow forgotten that fact, his sister's next words reminded him.

"So what? That fact hasn't kept me from doing anything else here on the ranch," his sister retorted. "I can ride just about any horse on this ranch. I can mend fences and chase down strays just as good as you can, maybe even better." The last statement had been issued as a challenge, but Adam pretended not hear the dangerous edge in his little sister's angry tone. Nor did he point out the fact that her injured limb had impaired her ability to complete those tasks without assistance.

When he refused to respond to her challenge, Sierra continued her tirade. "I've ridden in almost every cattle drive we've ever had. I've helped with the branding just about every year, and I don't suppose you've forgotten about that puma that I shot last month?"

"I haven't forgotten, but it seems that you've forgotten the fact that Pa and I had specifically told you to stay near the house," Adam reminded her in his superior big brother tone. So far, he had been able remain calm and cool in his demeanor, but Sierra could hear the warning in his voice that matched the sternness in his dark eyes. Out of all of them, Adam was the one who had the least amount of patience, especially when it came to dealing with his youngest brother and sister's wild shenanigans. It was becoming clear to all that his patience had almost reached its limit.

"See what I mean? You always treat me like a baby!" Sierra exclaimed. "It's always, 'stay near the house so you don't get hurt.'"

"Sierra, we're not trying to treat you like a baby," her father spoke up. "We're only trying to protect you."

"But Pa, I'll be with the boys the entire time," Sierra pointed out. "And you _know_ that they're not going to let anything happen to me."

"But what about your leg?" Ben questioned. "The boys will be in the saddle for the better part of each day and you know how that affects your leg." Sierra considered her father's words. He was right. Even riding side saddle, her leg normally gave her great pain after riding for extended periods of time. Rubbing it with liniment usually offered some relief, but many times the pain resulted in sleepless nights. Was the thrill of accompanying her older brothers worth dealing with the pain that was sure to plague her? Within seconds, Sierra had made up her mind.

"I can handle it, Pa," she said firmly, squaring her shoulders in determination. "I still want to go."

Ben was silent as he studied his daughter's stubborn face. The image of her mother, Marie, came back to him and for a moment, and Ben was reminded of how much the girl reflected her. Though the dark brown color of Sierra's hair had obviously been inherited from her father, the brilliant green eyes that she shared with her brother Joe had come from no one but her mother, however the color of the girl's eyes was a much lighter and brighter shade of green than the boy's. Her hair wasn't quite as curly as her older brother's or her mother's for that matter, but there were plenty of waves present. Despite the minor differences in appearance, there was still no denying that the stubborn, fiery tempered fifteen year old girl was Marie's daughter.

Ben sighed softly; he had made a promise to himself and to Marie when she died that he would protect Sierra, but she was growing up. When she was younger, he could tell her a simple 'no' about something and for the most part, she would obey without too much argument. But the girl sitting in front of him was no longer the baby that he wished she was. She was fifteen years old and demanding to be treated as such. Ben knew that he and the boys had taught her well how to defend herself, but he couldn't quiet quell the feeling of the need to protect her. It had seemed to grow stronger ever since the girl's accident two years ago. The thought of the pain that she would be in and his inability to soothe it almost made him refuse to allow her to go.

'_You ought to let her go,' _a voice whispered softly in Ben's head, a voice that sounded very much like Marie's. _'She will be all right. The boys will be with her.'_ 'But what about her leg? She's going to be in so much pain if I let her go,' Ben silently argued with the voice. _'If she were to stay home, she'd still be in pain. The only difference is that you'd be here to watch her deal with it; there'd be nothing you could do to ease it for her. Let her go with them. You know how the boys dote on her and they will look after her just fine,' _the voice argued back._ 'She's not an invalid, Ben. Let the girl have some fun.'_

Ben sighed. "All right, you can go," he told Sierra and watched her face light up with delight mixed with surprise. "On one condition…" her father held his hand up as he continued. "Your brothers must agree to take full responsibility of looking out for you." Sierra turned her face towards her brothers, expectantly.

"Count me in," Joe agreed returning his sister's smile.

Hoss too nodded his agreement. "Sure, why not?"

Sierra then turned her gaze to meet that of her oldest brother's. She had known that Joe and Hoss would agree immediately, but Adam, on the other hand, was a different story. The look on his face confirmed her suspicions.

"Adam?" Sierra prodded quietly.

"You heard what I had to say," was her oldest brother's reply.

"But Adam, I promise to be good and listen to what you say," Sierra told him.

"Look at it this way, Adam. If ya let her come 'long, we won't be stuck eatin' Lil' Joe here's cookin'," Hoss pointed out as he jerked his thumb in the direction of his youngest brother. None of the brothers' cooking skills were anything to boast about, but Joe's were by far the worst of all.

"Hey, my cooking's not that ba…" Joe started then broke off as he realized Hoss' intentions. "Uh, yeah Adam, it'd be like having Hop Sing out there with us."

Adam regarded his brothers coolly. He knew what they were trying to do. Frankly, he wasn't sure why he was so against Sierra going with them. After all, she_ had _just promised to be good and listen to him, though he wasn't quite convinced that she'd be able to remember her promise for the entire trip. Turning his dark eyes back to meet his sister's bright green ones, he studied her carefully. It was evident how much she wanted to go. He had seen her entire face light up with excitement when Ben had given his permission.

"You promise to listen to what I tell you, with no arguments?" Adam clarified.

Sierra nodded enthusiastically."I promise, cross my heart and hope to die," she told him tracing a cross over her heart.

Adam sighed. "All right, but I expect you to remember your promise," he said as he gave in.

With a smile, Sierra jumped up from her chair, causing it to fall backwards and would have hit the floor, had Hoss not caught it as she rushed around the table as quickly as she could with her pronounced limp to throw her arms around her oldest brother. "Oh, thank you, Adam!" she exclaimed.

"If you don't go finish your dinner and quit trying to suffocate me, I just might end up changing my mind," Adam replied trying to sound gruff. But Sierra wasn't fooled. Giggling, she released her brother and returned to her spot at the table.

The rest of the meal was much more enjoyable. Adam and Ben discussed the best places for them to hunt; Joe and Hoss added their opinions a couple of times, but Sierra was too excited to pay much attention to what they were saying.

_She was really going! _Sierra almost couldn't believe that she been given permission to go on the trip with her brothers. Every year as far back as she could remember, Sierra had asked begged to be allowed to go, but every year the answer had been the same, 'no' and she'd had to remain home with her father and Hop Sing. The last two years, she had been recovering from her surgeries so going anywhere on horseback had been out of the question.

"Hey Pa, you know we'll be pretty close to the Paiute village," Joe pointed out, catching Sierra's attention. "I was thinking, what if we stopped by and took a look at their horses? We could take some extra supplies to trade with chief Winnemucca. They could probably use the extra supplies during the upcoming winter."

"Yeah, they've got some of the purttiest horses I've ever seen up there in their herd," Hoss agreed. "You 'member that speckled stallion we saw a few years ago?"

"He belonged to Winnemucca's daughter, didn't he? I can't think of her name," Adam said thoughtfully.

"Little Fawn," Sierra told him.

"That's it," Joe agreed snapping his fingers. "That was one amazing horse. I've never seen coloring like that one before. And he was very gentle for a stallion."

"Yeah, he was. Little Fawn let me ride him a couple of times. He was really fast too," Sierra added. "Do you think I'll be able to see Little Fawn while we're up there?"

"We'll have to see," Adam said. "It depends on whether Pa wants to us to trade for a couple of horses or not." He glanced at Ben waiting for his answer.

"I suppose that'll be fine," his father agreed. "It couldn't hurt to have a couple more good horses on hand. Besides, I think it's time Sierra had a good horse of her own to ride."

"You mean it, Pa?" Sierra asked her eyes wide, as her excitement doubled.

Ben nodded. "I've been meaning to get you a horse since you've outgrown Paint," he told her. Paint was the little pony that Sierra had ridden for as long as could remember. She had outgrown him just before her accident and had been riding one of the extra saddle horses since her recovery.

"I get to pick it out?" Sierra asked.

"As long as Adam approves of it," Ben told her turning to face his oldest son. "I'm going to trust you to help pick out a dependable mount for your sister." Adam nodded.

"Oh boy! I can't wait until tomorrow!" Sierra exclaimed, almost bouncing in her chair from excitement.

"We've got an early day tomorrow, so I'd head for bed if I were you," Adam said as he swallowed the last of his supper.

"Good idea; the sooner I go to bed, the sooner tomorrow will come," Sierra pointed out as she jumped from her chair and hurriedly limped towards the stairs, pausing only long enough to hug her father and brothers good night.

-/-/-/-/-/-

"Good luck! Have a safe trip!"

"Don't worry, Pa, we will!"

It was just barely light outside when the four Cartwright children rode away from the ranch house the next morning. Sierra had wanted to race away as fast their horses could go, but Adam had told her that they had a long hard day's ride ahead of them meaning that they needed to pace the horses. So, instead they ended up in a line. Adam was in front on Sport, his chestnut colored gelding. Directly behind him was Joe on his pinto, Cochise. Sierra rode behind them on Phantom, an old gray gelding that was as gentle as a lamb. Hoss and his black horse, Chubb, brought up the rear. Two other horses had also been brought along to carry the needed supplies; one of which was being led by Joe and the other by Hoss.

Since it was the middle of October, the sun wasn't as hot as it had been a few weeks ago and for that, Sierra was glad. She had brought along both her thick winter coat and her light jacket, which she was currently wearing. The wind was blowing and there was just enough chill in it to make a person shiver. As Sierra tucked the edges of her split skirt tightly around her legs, she found herself wishing that her father would've let her borrow a pair of her brother Joe's pants. The metal of her brace was now ice cold, making it even harder to keep warm.

Despite the chilly temperatures, Sierra found herself enjoying the ride. She had always loved riding horses for as far back as she could remember. Since her recovery from her accident, Sierra found that she loved riding even more. Being left with a weak leg meant that she was unable to do anything by herself without the aid of either her brace or her crutches and sometimes even both were needed. The surgeons had done a remarkable job of setting the badly broken bones in her knee joint; many times the Cartwrights had been told that it was hopeless for Sierra to ever be able to walk again. Thanks to the miraculous job done by the doctors and the famous Cartwright stubbornness, Sierra had proved everyone wrong and had been walking again a year later. She had however been left with a very noticeable limp which greatly hampered her abilities to do many tasks that before would have been considered 'easy' jobs. She couldn't run; she couldn't jump; climbing stairs even proved difficult at times. But, mounted on a horse, even in a sidesaddle, she was able to forget about her injury for a little while. It didn't matter what she couldn't do; the horse hid those facts.

By the time they stopped for camp that night, the sun was already setting. Camp was set up quickly as the four Cartwright's scattered to tend to the necessary tasks of gathering firewood, fetching water from the creek, tending the horses, and starting the fire. Hop Sing had sent along enough stew to hold them over until they reached the shack, so Sierra merely heated it up.

"Something sure smells good!" Adam stated when he returned from tending the horses.

"Sure does!" Hoss agreed as he and Joe joined them by the campfire. "Boy, I'm so hungry I could eat a horse!"

"Well, I'm afraid that's not on the menu for tonight, big brother," Sierra said as she spooned out the stew onto her brothers' waiting plates.

"Mm-mm! Boy oh boy, you shore do make a mean stew, Shortcakes," Hoss praised as he began to plow his way through the pile of stew on his plate. "You know, this almost tastes as good as Hop Sing's."

"That might be because it _is_ Hop Sing's stew," Sierra informed him with a smile.

"That makes sense," Hoss said as Adam and Joe chuckled.

"How long will be before we get to the shack?" Sierra asked.

"Oh, I'd say at the rate we're goin' that we'll get there the day after tomorrow," Joe told her. "Wouldn't you say so, Adam?"

Adam nodded. "Yeah, let's just hope this storm holds off until then," he said.

"What storm? There hasn't been a cloud in the sky," Hoss replied.

"There's a storm coming; a bad one," Adam told him. "I can feel it in my bones." Adam always knew when a storm was coming. Years of riding half-wild horses had left the oldest Cartwright boy with a bad back.

Supper was soon finished and the dishes were washed and put away. The slight daytime chill had dropped to almost freezing, forcing the four siblings to spread out their bedrolls as close to the fire as possible. Hoss had found a good sized log that would keep the fire burning all night. Still, the boys decided to take turns sitting up to make sure that it didn't die. Adam had first watch.

"You warm enough, Littlin'?" he asked Sierra as he tucked the covers up around her.

"Yeah," she answered.

"How's the leg?" he asked her.

"It's fine," was Sierra's response. Adam gave her a warning glare. He knew she was in pain and he didn't believe her lie for a moment.

"Sierra," he said, his voice warning her to tell him the truth. She sighed.

"All right, it hurts some, but it's not bad," she told him. "Really, Adam, I'm fine." Her tired green eyes met his dark ones and Adam saw the pain that was written in them. Knowing that there was nothing he could do, Adam merely nodded, tucking the covers even more tightly around her small figure. Like all of them, he hated to see his little sister in so much pain especially since there was nothing he could do about it.

"Sure you are," Adam smiled and gently planted a kiss on her forehead. "Good night, Littlin'," he said. "Sleep well."

"Good night, Adam," Sierra replied with a smile which he returned before crawling back into his own bedroll. "Night, Hoss. Night, Joe."

"G'night," they called back from their places across the fire.

-/-/-/-/-

When the four Cartwrights finally reached the hunting shack a few days later, the weather was still cold. Although it wasn't freezing during the daytime, at night the temperature dropped to almost below freezing and they were grateful for the warmth the small building would provide them.

Besides the fact that it was comparatively sturdy, the shack was just that, a shack. It wasn't hard to see that it had been built in a hurry, using odds and ends of leftover lumber. The tiny barn and the corral around it weren't in much better condition, but at least both would shelter the horses and their masters from the dangerous mountain winds.

"Take whatever of the supplies you can carry and go inside," Adam told Sierra as he dismounted before helping her down from the saddle. "We'll take care of the horses."

"I can do it," Sierra protested jerking Phantom's reins away from her oldest brother's outstretched hand. Adam had been babying her for the entire trip and while she hadn't minded too much at first, it was starting to get on her nerves. She knew he was only trying to ease what he could of the pain from her leg, but Sierra also knew that if she didn't do something quickly, Adam would have her confined in bed inside the shack for the entire duration of their stay. As she turned to lead the gray gelding toward the barn, she found that the gentle horse didn't follow. Turning, she saw why. Hoss was standing by Phantom's head, his large hand wrapped firmly around the bridle's cheek strap. "Not you too, Hoss!" Sierra complained.

Hoss stepped towards her, leading the horse beside him. When he was within reach, he gently pried the leather reins from her gloved hands. "I know you can do it, but the way I'm thinking, if you let us tend to 'im, you can go inside and have supper fixed by the time we're done." He grinned slyly down at his little sister, his blue eyes twinkling. "With older brother over there pushin' us the way he did today, I'm 'bout to die of starvation if'n I don't get some good food in me soon."

"You poor thing, I guess it would be a shame to let that happen, wouldn't it Joe?"Sierra asked as she desperately tried to keep a straight face.

"It sure would, Sis," Joe agreed, shaking his head and clucking his tongue in false pity. "Just look at 'iIm, wasting away to nothing. Why, at the rate he's going, he'll be gone before nightfall. Shame on you Adam, for working him so hard." By this time, Sierra was having a hard time suppressing her laughter. The mischievous twinkle in Joe's hazel eyes and his look of false pity, combined with Hoss' mournful face, was almost more than she could handle. Being used to his younger brothers' antics, Adam merely rolled his eyes at them.

"I don't think Hoss is in any more danger of starving than an elephant is," he remarked with a straight face. Joe and Sierra erupted in a fury of laughter while Hoss pretended to be hurt by his solemn older brother's playful jab. But the twinkle in his eyes told them that he himself was having a hard time hiding his merriment. "But the rest of us might starve if we don't get these horses taken care of," he remarked as he passed them on his way to the barn.

Still laughing, Sierra gathered up as much of the supplies as she could and headed into the shack. The inside of the shack was pretty similar to its outside, plain and simple. Two double bunks sat in one corner and a small cot sat in the corner opposite with the fireplace in between them. A small table and four rickety-looking wooden stools stood in the center of the room. Next to the door was a small cupboard beside the tiny open window. Other than that, the room was void of any other furnishings.

Grateful that whoever had last stayed there had filled the wood box before they had left, she immediately set about to start a fire in the fireplace and despite the chill from the open window, the shack was beginning to warm up. After finding an extra deerskin hide that had been left in the shack before, Sierra quickly nailed it in place over the window's opening then stood back to survey her work. It wasn't the work of a professional, she knew, but at least it would keep the majority of the wind out of the shack.

Having eaten the last of Hop Sing's stew the night before, Sierra sorted through the supplies as she debated on what to cook for her brothers, one which was supposedly 'starving.' By the time she heard the stopping of boots on the wooden step outside, a delicious aroma had filled the shack.

"Boy, am I starving!" Hoss exclaimed as he threw his ten-gallon hat on top of the table. "Is it ready?" he asked as Sierra set a metal plate of food at each place. Hungrily, Hoss plopped himself down in front of one of them and lifted his utensils, ready to begin his meal.

"It is, but I don't know how you expect there to be enough room for the four of us and your monstrous hat at this tiny table," his sister told him as she snatched the plate out from in front of him and stared pointedly at the hat that was taking up a good portion of the table.

"Aw, come on, Shortcakes, I'm hungry! There's plenty of room," the large boy protested, a hint of a whine in his voice. "And my hat's not that big."

"Either you move your hat off the table or you can say goodbye to your supper," Sierra told him as she stubbornly crossed her arms.

"But, that's not fair!" Hoss whined, giving her his pitiful face.

"You heard what I had to say," Sierra replied, not at all fazed by his begging. Hoss turned to his brothers for help.

"I think you'd better listen to her, Hoss," Adam suggested as he glanced at their little sister's stubborn face while sitting down on the stool beside his large brother.

"Yeah, big brother, you know when she gets that look on her face, there's no changing her mind," Joe agreed as he slipped into the seat opposite from Hoss.

With an over-exaggerated sigh, Hoss removed his large hat from the table and Sierra returned his plate.

"Thank you," Sierra told him politely, but she couldn't hide the triumphant smile on her face as she slid into the vacant seat next to Joe.

"So what's the plan for tomorrow, Adam?" Joe wondered.

"Well, I was thinking that we ought to do some scouting that way we can locate the best spots for when we're ready to hunt," Adam replied.

"Sounds good to me," Joe agreed.

"When are we going to see the horses?" Sierra asked.

"A little impatient, aren't we, Shortcakes?" Hoss teased.

"Yes, do you blame me?" Sierra replied. Hoss chuckled and shook his head.

"Probably the day after tomorrow," Adam told his sister.

On that note, supper was soon finished and the dishes done. Adam pulled out his guitar and began to gently strum the strings. Hoss, Joe, and Sierra made themselves comfortable at the table or the bunks.

"Play something lively, Adam," Hoss requested after listening to his older brother strum his usual warm up notes.

Adam nodded. "Anything specific?" he asked.

Hoss shrugged and shook head. "You pick," was his reply.

Adam smiled and nodded again as he immediately launched into the first verses of 'Sourwood Mountain."

"_Chickens crowin' on Sourwood Mountain,_

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_So many pretty girls I can't count 'em,_

_Hey ho, diddle-um day.  
_

_My true love's a blue-eyed dandy,  
Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_She's as sweet as sugar candy,  
Hey, ho, diddle-um day."_

By the time Adam had reached the chorus, all three of his siblings were clapping and singing along with him. Adam winked at Sierra as he noticed her unable to keep her tapping toes still. Even though she was a tomboy, he knew how much his baby sister loved to dance, which was probably why she never seemed to lack for a partner whenever they had parties at the Ponderosa. Her accident had hindered her speed while dancing, but anyone could see how much she still loved it. Adam wondered how long it would be before she would manage to drag Little Joe off the bunk to dance with her.

As it turned out, he didn't have to wait long before Sierra jumped from up from her spot at the table and grabbed Joe's hand, pulling him off of the bottom bunk where he had been sitting. While they watched their younger brother carefully swing her around the small room, Adam and Hoss continued the song.

"_My true love lives over the river,  
Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_A few more jumps and I'll be with her._

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_My true love lives over the ocean,  
Hey, ho, diddle-um day.  
I go see her if I take a notion,_

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_Ducks in the pond, geese in the ocean,_

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_Devil's in the women if they take a notion,_

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_Big dogs bark and the little ones bite you,_

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day._

_The big girls court and the little ones spite you,_

_Hey, ho, diddle-um day."_

When the song ended, Adam quickly switched to another song and brother and sister changed their dance to match. By the time he had played several songs, Sierra had even managed to drag Hoss onto the floor to dance the last song with her. When it ended, both she and Hoss collapsed onto the closest bunk in a fit of breathless giggles.

"Oh… oh… Shortcakes,… I'm plumb worn out now," Hoss panted.

Sierra giggled."That's only 'cause you're outta shape, big brother," she teased as she poked his largely rounded middle.

"I ain't outta shape!" Hoss protested pushing his sister's finger away. "Ain't nobody ever told you that round is a shape?" He patted his middle proudly, sending his siblings into a fit of laughter.

"Play somethin' else, Adam," Sierra begged when the laughter had died down.

"Why don't you play something?" Adam suggested holding his guitar out to her. During the time she had been laid up in bed recovering, Adam had taught Sierra how to play the guitar and though she didn't often like to play for anyone besides herself and sometimes the ranch animals, she was very good at it. He even said once that she probably had more musical talent then he did.

"Yeah, Sis, we haven't heard you play in a while. You play us somethin'," Joe agreed, folding his hands behind his head as he lay back on the opposite bunk.

"But I don't know what to play," Sierra protested.

"Do the one you played last week," Adam told her. At her puzzled look, he clarified, "when you were down by the lake."

"You heard that?" Sierra asked sounding surprised. "I didn't think anyone was down there." Adam smiled.

"I was coming back from checking the fences when I heard you singing, so I stopped to listen," he said. "I liked the song a lot."

"Me too," Sierra replied softly.

"Well then play it for us," Hoss told her.

With nervous hands, Sierra took the outstretched guitar from her oldest brother, who gave her an encouraging smile and a wink. Gently she stroked the strings, listening as the beginning notes of the song filled the small room. Then with a slight tremble, her sweet soprano voice began to sing the words:

"_BACKWARD, turn backward, O Time, in your flight,  
Make me a child again just for to-night!  
Mother, come back from the echoless shore,  
Take me again to your heart as of yore;  
Kiss from my forehead the furrows of care,  
Smooth the few silver threads out of my hair;  
Over my slumbers your loving watch keep;—  
Rock me to sleep, mother,—rock me to sleep!_

Backward, flow backward, O tide of the years!  
I am so weary of toil and of tears,—  
Toil without recompense, tears all in vain,—  
Take them, and give me my childhood again!  
I have grown weary of dust and decay,—  
Weary of flinging my soul-wealth away;  
Weary of sowing for others to reap;—  
Rock me to sleep, mother,—rock me to sleep!

Tired of the hollow, the base, the untrue,  
Mother, O mother, my heart calls for you!  
Many a summer the grass has grown green,  
Blossomed and faded, our faces between:  
Yet, with strong yearning and passionate pain,  
Long I to-night for your presence again.  
Come from the silence so long and so deep;—  
Rock me to sleep, mother,—rock me to sleep!

Over my heart, in the days that are flown,  
No love like mother-love ever has shone;  
No other worship abides and endures,—  
Faithful, unselfish, and patient like yours:  
None like a mother can charm away pain  
From the sick soul and the world-weary brain.  
Slumber's soft calms o'er my heavy lids creep;—  
Rock me to sleep, mother,—rock me to sleep!

Come, let your brown hair, just lighted with gold,  
Fall on your shoulders again as of old;  
Let it drop over my forehead to-night,  
Shading my faint eyes away from the light;  
For with its sunny-edged shadows once more  
Haply will throng the sweet visions of yore;  
Lovingly, softly, its bright billows sweep;—  
Rock me to sleep, mother,—rock me to sleep!"  
_  
_

As the last gentle notes of the music died away, silence filled the warm shack, each of the Cartwright's lost in their own memories which had been brought back by the song.

"I 'member that song," Hoss said quietly.

"Yeah, Mama used to sing it to us at bedtime," Joe remembered. His glistening emerald eyes met his sister's brighter green ones in a sad smile. It had been years since he'd heard that song; since their mother's death, he realized. Sierra had been only a little over year old when she'd died so it would be unlikely that she remembered. "We used to call it; 'Mama's Song'," he told her.

"Maybe that's why I like it so much," Sierra said, brushing away the tears that had come to her eyes during the song.

"You sound just like her when you sing it," Adam told her. Sierra blushed lightly under her oldest brother's compliment. Though she remembered very little about her mother, she had been told that Marie had had a voice like an angel. She had seen pictures of her mother many times and it often gave her comfort to think that she was so much like her. Often she wondered what her mother would have said if she could see how she had turned out.

Hoss cleared his throat suddenly, breaking quiet stillness that had fallen like a blanket over the warm shack. "If we're gonna do some scoutin' tomorrow, we'd better get to bed," he said. The others agreed and each of them went to sleep that night remembering quiet memories of their mothers.

-/-/-/-/-/-

**Well, there's the first chapter; what do you think? If you want to listen to the songs that I mentioned, you can find them on YouTube; just search for 'song sourwood mountain' or 'song rock me to sleep mother'. **

**Don't forget to leave your thoughts in the review section and answer this question: Which Bonanza character is your favorite and why? **


	2. Chapter 2

**Well, here's the next chapter! Special thanks to **debbie55, BLBLF, Bev,** and **Aurea** for their reviews and to all the other 139 people who read but did not review. I hope y'all enjoy this chapter; it's a little shorter than the last one, but it's just starting to give you a peek into the action that will happen in the other chapters.**

**So anyway, here's chapter2!**

-/-/-/-/-

CHAPTER 2

"How much longer till we get there?" Sierra asked a hint of a whine in her voice. It was a day later and she and her brothers were all riding to the Paiute camp. Though they had only been riding about ten minutes, it seemed more like thirty to the excited fifteen year old.

"Not much farther," was Adam's reply from up ahead of her.

Sierra sighed impatiently, but said nothing else. Instead she turned her attention to the overgrown trail they were following. The sun was bright in the sky, but it hadn't done much in the way of warming the chilly mountain wind that seemed to blow almost constantly. At least she'd been able to convince Adam to let her borrow a pair of Joe's extra pants he had brought, which were doing a much better job of shielding her legs from the cold than her usual split skirts would. The pants also allowed her to wear her brace over the top of them, adding both extra warmth and support. It had taken a little bit of persuading, after all, Pa would have a fit if he knew, Sierra reminded herself grimly. Although he allowed her to be a tomboy, he had grown pretty strict against her wearing her brothers' britches. Several women in town had taken to wearing men's clothing while working on their ranches, but Ben had insisted that_ his_ daughter was going to look like a respectable young lady. But no one was going to see her attire, besides her older brothers and the Indian tribe, way up here, she had told Adam earlier the day before. Besides, it was much easier to move silently through the woods when you didn't have to worry your full skirts getting caught on something.

A break in the trees ahead, brought Sierra's mind back to the present. They had finally reached the camp. As she followed Adam and Joe into the clearing, she saw several teepees. Men, women, and children were scattered here and there, each doing some sort of task. Adam reined in Sport at the edge of the camp as he spotted Chief Winnemucca approaching them with a few of his braves. Joe stopped his pinto beside his oldest brother's horse while Hoss and Sierra lined up their horses behind them.

"Greetings from the Ponderosa, Chief Winnemucca," Adam warmly greeted the old chief who smiled back in return. "We have come to interest you in a trade. May we?" Adam asked as he gestured toward the ground, asking for permission to dismount. With a nod from the chief, the three Cartwright boys dismounted and Hoss gently lifted Sierra from the saddle, despite her whispered protests.

"What trade?" the old chief inquired.

"My father, Ben Cartwright, is very interested in the Paiute's _Wesepooggoo_," Adam told him. "We have brought supplies that you may need during the winter to trade for a few of the horses, if you are willing." The chief nodded in approval.

"Ben Cartwright is a good man, friend of my people," he said. "We will trade." Turning, he spoke a few words in his native tongue to the nearby braves who left before he turned back to the Cartwrights. "Come, I will show you horses."

As they followed the chief through the small village, Sierra soon spotted a black-haired girl about her age who was busy playing with a few much younger children. The girl's dark brown eyes met Sierra's and her face lit up with a smile.

"Sierra Cartwright!" the Indian girl exclaimed excitedly as she ran towards her friend who had stopped following her older brothers at the Indian girl's call.

"Little Fawn!" Sierra replied as she gave the girl a hug. "It's so good to see you again!"

"You too!" Little Fawn said. "What are you doing all the way up here?"

"I came with my brothers," Sierra told her. "They came up here to hunt and Pa said I could come too. And guess what? We brought some supplies to trade for a few of your horses. Pa even said I could pick one out for my own!"

"I know just the one for you!" Little Fawn said excitedly. "Come on, I'll show you!" And with that she grabbed Sierra's hand and took off as fast as Sierra was able to go towards a small corral at the opposite edge of the clearing.

Catching sight of the horse that the corral contained, Sierra slid to a halt and gasped, her eyes opened wide in amazement. The horse was beautiful. Its jet black coat shone in the bright sun, causing the array of white speckles that dotted its rump to stand out even more. The three white stockings were a creamy white color which matched the wide blaze on its nose. As they approached, the horse reared, kicking its long slender forelegs in the air, a shrill neigh escaping into the air. Its legs landed on the ground with a loud thud before it bolted into a full gallop as it circled the perimeter of the small corral.

"Well, what do you think of her?" Little Fawn wondered as he reached out her hand to gently pat the horse's nose. With a quick toss of her mane, the horse lowered her nose to nuzzle the girl's hand.

"She's beautiful!" Sierra said as she approached the horse, still in a since of awe. As soon as she was within distance where she could touch her, the horse backed up, rearing wildly as it let out a sound similar to a scream.

"She's not much used to other people," Little Fawn explained. "I raised her myself after her mother died when she was born and I guess I spoiled her too much." The girl shrugged her shoulders as she continued. "She's got a strong spirit and likes to have her way. A few of the boys have tried to break her but she doesn't much like men. They don't like her much now either." Sierra understood what her friend was trying to say. The horse standing in front of her had been able defeat every man who had attempted to break her stubborn spirit, probably injuring many of them. That not only had fueled her strong will but their rough handling had caused her to mistrust men in general.

Sierra backed up a few steps and watched as the filly swung her head as if debating on how much of a threat Sierra was to her. After a few minutes, she must have concluded that she was harmless because she slowly moved to nuzzle the Indian girl who giggled at the tickling lips. It was obvious how much the horse and girl loved each other.

"Why don't you break her?" Sierra asked.

"I was wanting to try soon, but I have not had the chance," Little Fawn replied. "My father forbids me to be around her unless someone is with me and everyone in the village is afraid of her." She sighed. "My father says he thinks I should turn her loose."

"Why don't you?" Sierra wondered.

"I don't know," the Indian girl answered. "Do you think your brothers could tame her?"

Sierra studied the filly thoughtfully. "Maybe, but I'm not sure if they would," she replied.

"She'd be a good horse if someone could only control her strong spirit," Little Fawn said.

Slowly Sierra stepped towards the filly, whose face was turned away from her. She stretched out her hand and gently touched the side of the horse's shiny black neck. For a moment, Sierra thought the filly would explode like she had before when she'd come near, but Little Fawn had seen Sierra edging closer and had been showering the horse with affection to keep her occupied. As she slowly began to run her hand down the filly's neck, Sierra watched as the horse began to calm down and before long she had swung her majestic head around to contemplate this new girl's behavior.

"Hey there, girl, you're a pretty thing aren't you?" Sierra crooned to the horse, who swiveled her ears at the sound of Sierra's voice. She nuzzled the girl's outstretched hand before moving to nuzzle her pocket. Sierra giggled. "You're pretty smart too," she said, pulling a carrot stick out of the pocket and offering it to the horse.

"She likes carrots," Little Fawn informed her friend, though it was quite obvious from the horse's contented chewing.

"My pony Paint likes carrots too," Sierra told her. By then the horse had finished her snack and was snuffling Sierra's pocket again in search of more. "I'm sorry, but I don't have any more." As if understanding the horse bobbed her head several times before stretching her neck out to flutter lips against Sierra's cheek. Surprised, Sierra almost stepped back thinking that the horse was going to bite her, but the girl stopped when Little Fawn motioned for her not to.

"She's giving you kisses," she said. "She's really taken a liking to you; I've never seen her do that to anyone but me." Sierra smiled and reached up to pet the filly's muzzle. "I think she'd be very happy with you. What would you name her if you get to have her?"

Hmm… I don't know," Sierra said thoughtfully. "I'll have to think about it some." She continued petting the horse. "I hope Adam lets me have you," she told her quietly.

"Do you think he will?" Little Fawn asked.

"I don't know. Pa told him to pick me out a dependable horse," Sierra explained. "And right now, she's not really dependable."

"Maybe we can work with her while you're up here," Little Fawn suggested. "How long will you be here?"

"About two weeks, maybe a little longer. It depends on how well the hunting goes," Sierra said. "But if Adam doesn't let me have her, there's no way he'll even let me around her."

"Well, who says he has to know?" Little Fawn asked giving her friend a sly smile. Having several older brothers of her own, Little Fawn was well acquainted with how over protective they tended to be. That was one of the reasons why she and Sierra had become fast friends the last time the Paiutes had come down from the mountains.

Sierra glanced at her friend and returned her sly smile with a mischievous one of her own. She didn't like tricking her older brothers and knew it was wrong, but occasionally she felt it was necessary in order to prove that despite her injury and the fact that she was a girl, she was still capable of doing many of the same tasks that they could. She knew that it would be a little more difficult to break the filly using a sidesaddle, but maybe if they got her used to the weight of the saddle, Adam might allow her to have the filly.

"We could start gentling her tomorrow, that way maybe she'll be ready by the time you leave," the Indian girl thought out loud. "Do you think you could get away from your brothers for a few hours every day?" Sierra thought for a few minutes.

"I'm sure gonna try," she said. "I may have to tell one of them though."

"Why?" Little Fawn wondered.

"Well, Adam will probably pair us off into two groups when we go hunting. He's pretty set on me goin' with him, but I think I may be able to get him to let me go with Hoss," Sierra explained.

"What about your other brother? He might be easier to convince since he's closer to your age," Little Fawn surmised.

But Sierra shook her head. "There's no way Adam'd let me and Joe go by ourselves," she told the other girl. "Joe's eighteen and Adam says that we get into too much trouble when the two of us are together."

"Which one would be the best if we needed help with her?" Little Fawn asked, gesturing to the horse.

"Probably Hoss," Sierra replied. "Joe's the best at breaking horses, but they seem to trust Hoss a little more. He's got a special way with them." Both girls studied the horse thoughtfully.

"Yeah, he'd probably be best," Little Fawn agreed. "The young men in my village who tried to break are good horse breakers, but none of them seemed to be very good at gaining her trust."

"Hey there, Shortcakes, I thought you were gonna help Adam pick out your horse." The girls turned to see Hoss approaching them with Little Joe not far behind him.

"I already picked out the one I wanted," Sierra told her brothers, as she gestured towards the corral they were standing in front of. During the girls' discussion, the horse had wandered away from the fence, apparently having found some particularly tasty grass to nibble at the back corner of her enclosement. At the moment, she was turned away from the boys and was unaware of their arrival. Sierra watched as her brothers stared at the filly in amazement that was similar to hers when she had first seen it.

Hoss let out a low whistle. "Wow-ee, that shore is one pretty fancy piece of horseflesh," he said. "Must've been sired by that stallion of yours, Little Fawn." The girl nodded proudly at the compliment to her horse. "What'cha think, Little Joe?"

"It sure is something all right," the younger boy agreed as he climbed up on the side of the corral fence, a movement that alerted the horse of their presence. For a moment, she did nothing, only stood and stared at the boys, her nostrils flaring. Joe put out his hand, inviting the horse to come closer. That was when she decided to react. With a high-pitched squeal, the filly reared, waving her slender front legs in the air before coming down with a thud only to rear again. Her jet black mane flew with the movement only causing her to look more beautiful and majestic. After rearing several times, she bolted into a smooth canter around her pen, making sure to never come within range of the boys as he passed them.

"She doesn't much like men," Little Fawn explained the reason to the two older Cartwright boys.

"How old is she?" Hoss wondered, his eyes never leaving the black horse as she pranced around inside the corral.

"A little over two years old," was Little Fawn's reply.

"So she can still be broken without too much difficulty," Joe said.

"Do you think Adam would let me get her?" Sierra asked Hoss. Tearing his blue eyes away from the horse, Hoss looked down into his little sister's hopeful green ones.

Hoss could see how much she wanted this horse, but he could also see plenty of reason why their oldest brother would say no. "I don't know," he told her. "Pa did tell him to pick you out a dependable horse and I really don't think she's what he meant right now."

"But she can be broken," Sierra insisted. "Joe said it himself. Then she would be 'a dependable horse'."

Hoss held up his hands in a sign of surrender. "I ain't the one you gotta convince here, Shortcakes," he told her. "Pa told Adam to make the decision."

"Where is he?" Sierra asked.

"He was still over there looking over the horse herd when we left him," Joe said pointing in the direction they had come from.

"I'll show you where," Little Fawn offered and Sierra nodded, suddenly feeling nervous as she contemplated the best way to approach the subject with her eldest brother.

-/-/-/-/-

"Sierra Marie Cartwright! I said no and that's my final answer!" Adam firmly told his stubborn little sister. She had asked him about letting her have a certain horse. Upon first glance of the horse in question, Adam had been ready to agree with her. But after seeing the horse's reaction once she had spotted her audience, he quickly changed his mind. There was no way he was going to let his fifteen year old, headstrong little sister be around that horse. True, the horse could be broken and properly trained, but knowing Sierra, she wouldn't be able to wait until then before going around the horse, maybe even trying to break her herself, which would be a very dangerous task especially if she attempted it with her usual side saddle. Even with a regular saddle, Sierra would still be at risk; her leg was too weak to be able to keep her on a bucking horse. No, there was no way Adam was going to allow her to have the horse, knowing it was only a matter of time before she got herself hurt.

Sierra felt her eyes well up with angry tears and she roughly wiped them away with her palm. She knew it was her fault that Adam was upset with her; she should've known better then to continue her insistence when she knew that she had lost. But that was the reason why she didn't stop. She had already lost the argument so what else did she have to lose? It was obvious why Adam was refusing because it was the same reason he usually said no; he was afraid she would get hurt. He wouldn't tell Joe no if he wanted the horse, Sierra told herself bitterly. Even though she had known ahead of time what his reaction to that statement would be, Sierra couldn't help but say it to him. She had been right in her assumption. That statement had been the break of Adam's stretched patience, resulting in his latest response.

"Look at the horses Adam's picked out, Sis," Joe called from where he and Hoss were standing a few feet away admiring the three well-bred horses their older brother had selected for the trade. They had overheard the argument between their oldest and youngest siblings and both of them all too well that it was up to them to try and settle their stubborn spirits down. With an angry glare at Adam, Sierra turned on her heel and walked over to Joe and Hoss.

"Ain't they pretty?" Hoss asked, trying to take his sister's mind off the current subject.

"Yeah," was her only response. Turning to face her, he discovered that she had barely given the horses a cursory glance before staring at the wild black horse in the pen across the village. She was making it quite obvious to everyone around that if she had no intention of having anything to do with any other horse. Hoss sent a sideways glance at Adam, seeing that he too had noticed. Little Fawn came up to Sierra, a sympathetic smile on her face. The boys saw her whisper something to their sister who cast an angry glare over her shoulder at her oldest brother, before allowing her Indian friend to take her hand and lead her away from the village.

"Don't go far, Sierra. We'll be leaving soon," Adam called stiffly after her. The girl made no response, which was no surprise to her brothers, but they all knew that she had heard him.

-/-/-/-/-

Little Fawn took Sierra to a secluded thicket just on the edge of the village. "This is my special place," she told her friend with a smile. "Whenever my older brothers are getting annoying and I just feel like I need to get away, I always come here."

"I can see why," Sierra replied as she looked around the sunlit hiding place. It was close enough to the village to be within hearing distance, but well hidden enough so that it could not be easily found. Both girls were silent a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts.

"You wanna talk about it?" Little Fawn asked, seeing the familiar look on her face. Sierra looked at her puzzled a moment. "I have big brothers too. It always helps me to feel better whenever I talk about my feelings." Sierra sighed.

"Adam treats me like a baby," she started. "For some reason, he thinks that I can't do some of the things that they can because I'm a girl."

"I think that's only part of the reason," Little Fawn said. "He's worried about you getting hurt again."

Sierra sighed. "I know I can't do everything that they can do, but there are a lot of things that I can still do. Yeah, it may take me a little longer," she admitted. "But how am I supposed to find out what I can do if Adam won't even give me a chance to try? I keep trying to get him to let me try, but he's just so stubborn!" Little Fawn let out a quiet giggle, earning her a mild glare from her friend. "What's funny?"

"You just said that Adam was too stubborn," the Indian girl replied. "You are just as stubborn as he is." Sierra smiled a little as she realized that her friend was right; she was very stubborn. She supposed she had her father to thank for that. Everyone who knew them knew about the famous Cartwright stubbornness; it was just something that ran in the family, though it was a common debate about which family member had more.

Sierra couldn't help but laugh along with her friend. Slowly, she felt her anger begin to drain away. Little Fawn had been right; talking about it did help her to feel better. Granted, she still didn't think Adam was right in not allowing her to have the horse, but she was pretty sure that her plan would work.

"Come on, Sierra! Time to go!" the girls heard Adam call.

"Thanks, Little Fawn," Sierra gave the Indian girl a special smile.

"I'll see you tomorrow right?" Little Fawn asked.

"Yep," Sierra replied.

"Sierra!" this time the call came from Joe.

"You'd better go," Little Fawn said. "You don't want to get into any more trouble."

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow," Sierra told her as she hurried away through the trees towards where her brothers were waiting.

-/-/-/-/-/-

**Well, what do you think? Do you think the girls will be able to gentle the headstrong appaloosa filly by themselves? Will Adam discover their plan? If so, what will his reaction be? Hmm, somehow, I can't see this turning out too well! Please let me know your thoughts in the review section!**

**And now, here comes the fun part! This appaloosa filly needs a name and, guess what, you guys get to help name her! You have several chapters to think about names as I won't officially give her a name until the end of this story. Any suggestion is welcome! She can be named for her color (black with white spots on rump) or for her stubborn spirit. I have even considered some Indian words that had a meaning that related to her. The person whose suggestion I pick will be mentioned when the name is announced! So just have fun coming up with ideas and good luck! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Ok, so I wasn't planning on posting this until Monday but, thanks to **_**islaboe**_**, I decided to go ahead and post it today. So before we get into the chapter, let me first say a special thank you to all of my readers namely, **_**BLBLF, gidgetmarie55, Bobby, littlemom, Aurea, islaboe, Rachel L. Driscoll,**_** and to the other two **_**guests**_** who reviewed (if you'll leave some kind of name in your reviews I'll be able to know for sure who I'm referencing)! You all have no idea how much I enjoyed reading all of your reviews and thanks so mch for all of your name suggestions! I still haven't settled on the perfect one yet so feel free to keep leaving suggestions! Also I'd like to thank my beta reader, gaben, for designing my new book cover for me! It looks awesome!**

**Ok, I'm sure y'all are tired of hearing me talk so I'll just stop and let you get on to next chapter. I hope you enjoy it!**

-/-/-/-/-

CHAPTER 3

The next day dawned bright and early, finding the four Cartwrights preparing for the day's hunt. Much to her happiness, Adam had agreed for Sierra to go with Hoss without a moment's hesitation. Maybe Hoss had been able to soften their oldest brother's spirit after all. She held back a grimace as she remembered the ride back to the shack the day before.

It had been pretty silent except for Joe and Hoss' small attempts at trying to make conversation. After receiving merely grunts or short answers in response, they gave up their efforts. Though, Little Fawn had been able to thaw most of Sierra's temper, Sierra soon found out that Adam had no intention of forgetting so soon. She could practically feel the heat radiating from him, even though Joe rode between them. Sierra knew that having his temper hot at her was not a good way to ensure that she got the horse. Hoss had ridden up beside her, catching her attention. He gave her a quick wink followed by a warm smile which she returned. Though no words had been spoken, she knew that he was telling her that he would try to soften their older brother's attitude. She had hoped that he would be successful, but even then, she knew she was going to have to be on her best behavior from now on.

"Hoss, I want you and Sierra to go north and Joe and I will head south," Adam gave out assignments over the hurriedly eaten breakfast. "Try to be back before dark."

"Don't worry, Adam, we will," Hoss assured his older brother.

"And try to keep her out of trouble will you?" Adam asked, casting a wary glance in his little sister direction. Sierra clenched her fists under the table as she desperately tried to keep her temper under control. She met Joe's eyes from across the table and felt him put his hand on her knee.

"I'll be good, Adam, I promise," Sierra replied, forcing what she hoped was a convincing smile on her face.

_Yeah, like you promised before,_ he thought but wisely held back his retort. He didn't like being upset with the girl, but sometimes she was impossible. So far, both of them had managed to remain civil towards each other, and Sierra seemed to be trying extra hard to be nice to him. But he wasn't fooled for a minute. She was up to something. Hopefully Hoss would be able to figure out what it was. Adam was tempted to take her with him that day, but seeing as the tension that was till between them, he decided against it. Besides, Hoss might be able to talk some sense into the stubborn girl, he thought to himself as he quickly finished off his last bite of breakfast.

-/-/-/-/-

It seemed to Sierra that Hoss had the same thing in mind as they rode through the woods later that day. The hunt had gone well and both of them had been excited at the good luck they had run into.

"That sure went better than I expected," Hoss remarked to his little sister as they rode along.

"Yep, I'll bet Adam'll be happy," Sierra agreed. Both were silent for a minute, before Hoss spoke again.

"You know, Shortcakes, Adam's only tryin' to do what he thinks is best for ya," he told her, being the peacemaker that he was. "He don't want you to be unhappy; he's just tryin' to keep you safe."

"I know that, Hoss, but I'm tired of him treating me like a baby; like I'm some delicate china doll that'll break if you're not careful with it," Sierra replied. "Just because I'm a girl don't mean I can't do some of the things the rest of you do."

"No, but it don't mean ya can either," Hoss pointed out. "Besides, it ain't jist the fact that you're a girl." He gestured towards her injured leg.

"I can still do things!" Sierra exploded. Taking a deep breath to calm her temper she added, "I may be a little bit slower, but I'm not an invalid. I won't know what I _can_ do until I try. All I want is a fair chance, and Adam won't even give me that!" Hoss sighed as he watched her spur her horse into a faster pace, thus ending the discussion, as she quickly rode away from him. He could understand her frustration somewhat, but he could also see Adam's as well. His little sister was trying to prove herself. The only thing was that the tasks she often chose to try were ways she could too easily injure herself further. He knew Adam's fear of her getting hurt because he himself had felt it many times. But he could also see what their fear was doing to her; it was turning her into a daredevil. He had no doubt in his mind that she would be willing to do almost anything to prove her ability to them, no matter how much it might cost her.

Figuring that she was heading back to the shack, Hoss took his time going back. He knew that she needed some time to cool off before she had to face any of them again. Since it was only a little past noon, Hoss decided that it wouldn't hurt to do a little more hunting on his way back.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Unbeknownst to Hoss, Sierra had no intention of going to the shack then. She, instead, turned her mount towards the Indian village where she found Little Fawn eagerly waiting for her.

"You made it!" the girl exclaimed as Sierra rode towards her.

"Yep, it wasn't as hard as I thought either," Sierra replied as she dismounted, using a nearby stump for a step.

"Did you have to tell Hoss?" Little Fawn wondered. Sierra shook her head.

"Hopefully I won't have to," she said.

"You got everything we need?" Little Fawn asked.

"Yeah, I figured we could just use my saddle to get her used to the weight of it when we get to that part," Sierra said. "Did you finish all of your work for today?" Little Fawn nodded.

"I had to gather some herbs that our shaman needed earlier," the Indian girl told her. She sighed sadly. "Several people in the village are bad sick."

"Does he know what's wrong with them?" Sierra asked. Little Fawn shook her head.

"No, he's not sure," she replied.

"I hope they get better soon," Sierra said, giving her friend an encouraging smile.

"Thanks," Little Fawn said. Then she remembered the reason they were there. "Well, are we going to break this horse or not?"

"Let's do it!" Sierra exclaimed excitedly as she began walking towards the corral.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Gentling the filly turned out to be harder than either girl thought it would be. Though neither one had ever broken horses before, they both had watched their brothers do it many times. At least she was already used to the halter, so the bridle hadn't been too bad, except for her refusing to accept the bit. As it turned out, they only barely managed to set the saddle on her back before the black filly decided to start bucking, which she continued to do until her back was once again bare. This was repeated several times until finally, just as Sierra was about to leave, the filly stood still and allowed Little Fawn to pet her while Sierra gently lowered the saddle onto her back. The girls watched, as her eyes grew wide, and both were sure she was going to start bucking again. But she didn't; she merely snorted as she listened to their soft voices, crooning sweet things to her. After a few minutes, she even calmed down enough that she forgot about the saddle and began nibble on a carrot that Sierra had brought for her.

Needless to say, Sierra was excited with their progress, as she galloped back towards the shack that afternoon. She wasn't sure how long she had been since she'd left Hoss, but she knew it had to be close to dinner time. Hopefully, her brothers had not gotten back yet or she knew she'd have to come up with a convincing excuse, which in itself was a chore as he was a lousy liar. Not only that but she also knew that Adam would be expecting her to be up to something after her behavior the other day.

Much to her luck, no one was at the shack when she returned. She quickly stabled Phantom before heading inside. Supper that night was going to be something special.

-/-/-/-/-

When the Cartwright boys arrived at the shack later, the delicious aroma of their supper was hard to miss. Luckily, Hoss had managed to return long enough ahead of his brothers so that Adam did not suspect that Sierra had rode off from him by herself. He knew that his older brother would have had a fit if he ever found out.

All that evening, Sierra felt Adam's suspicious eyes on her and she did her best not to do anything that she wouldn't usually do. Her oldest brother was naturally suspicious by nature, so Sierra had known that it would be hard to keep her secret from him. But she was determined not to let him find out. By the time she slipped into bed that night, Sierra was satisfied that he was still in the dark regarding her plan. He had even praised her about the deer she had shot that morning.

-/-/-/-/-

The rest of the week passed by in pretty much the same manner. Sierra would go hunting with Hoss in the morning and then make up some excuse to go back to the shack just after lunch. If he was suspicious of her intentions, he never showed it, which only boosted Sierra's spirits and confidence more. She and Little Fawn were also making progress with the filly too. Still Sierra was no closer to coming up with a name for the majestic animal than she had been at the beginning.

After about a week of afternoon training sessions, the day came when both girls agreed that the filly was finally ready to have someone on her back. She now offered no resistance when the saddle and bridle were fastened on her and allowed both of the girls to touch her at their own free will. They had agreed that Little Fawn would be the one to try to ride her using one of the saddles that some settlers had traded the tribe a while back. Sierra could hardly concentrate on the hunt that morning as she followed quietly behind Hoss. When she missed a too easy target, Hoss knew there was something up.

"Nothing's up, I just missed," was Sierra's reply when Hoss asked. But he wasn't to be fooled that easily.

"If you were any other girl, I might believe you, but you never miss a shot that easy," her older brother replied. "It's not just that though; you've been acting strange all week."

"What do you mean?" Sierra asked giving him what she hoped was a blank look.

"Making excuses in order to go back to camp and going out of your way to be nice to Adam," Hoss stated his observations.

"The reason I wanted to go back to the shack was because I was tired and my leg was hurting. I also wanted to get an early start on supper, and I don't like Adam being mad at me so…" Sierra broke off when she saw that he wasn't falling for her excuses again. "Honest, Hoss, I'm not up to anything."

Hoss studied her carefully for a moment; her bright green eyes never leaving his blue ones. He was almost positive he saw a flicker of guilt flash across her face, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. Although he still wasn't satisfied that she was telling him the truth, Hoss knew he had no choice but to accept what she said. There was no way he was going to find out what she was up to if he kept pressing her; she obviously wasn't going to tell him. He knew it had to be something pretty important to her if she was going to lie about it; Sierra rarely ever told a lie. He had a better chance of finding out if she thought that he believed her story.

"All right, if you're sure," Hoss said with a sigh and Sierra nodded.

"I am," she assured him.

Hoss glanced up at the sun overhead and realized it was just after noon. "You plannin' on goin' back to camp now?" he asked as he began tying the morning's game onto Chubb's saddle.

"If it's all right," Sierra replied looking to him for approval. "I'd like to rub some liniment on my leg." Her older brother nodded, though he refused to meet her gaze. The fact that she had just freely admitted that her leg was hurting was even more of an indicator that she was up to something.

"Yeah, go on, I'll be along in a while," he told her. In record time, Sierra had swung up into Phantom's saddle and was riding away in the direction of the shack. Hoss quickly finished his task before mounting up and slowly followed his little sister's trail.

Sierra's trail was easy enough to follow. She had obviously been in a hurry, for as soon as it was safe she had nudged her mount into a full gallop. Though, she had started out in the direction of the shack, Hoss was not surprised when the tracks suddenly branched off in the opposite direction. He kept Chubb's pace slow, not wanting to alert his sister any way that she was being followed. It was also of no surprise to him when he discovered the tracks leading towards the Indian village. Fearing that he knew her intentions, Hoss allowed his horse to quicken his pace slightly.

When the village came into sight, Hoss silently dismounted, tying Chubb's reins to a nearby branch. Quietly his eyes scouted the village as he moved along in the cover of trees. So far there was no sign of Sierra, but Hoss knew that she was there.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Reaching the Indian village, Sierra slowed Phantom to a walk before pulling him to a halt beside the corral where she had been meeting Little Fawn for the past week. But today, her friend was nowhere in sight.

"Little Fawn? Where are you?" Sierra called quietly in case the girl was hiding somewhere in the trees. After waiting a few minutes and still getting no response, Sierra decided to see if she was in the village. She knew that the girl had been having to help nurse a few of the sick villagers and figured that she must've just lost track of the time.

Slowly, Sierra limped down the center of the village to the teepee where Little Fawn and her family lived. 'Strange,' she thought as she looked around at the unusually quiet village. 'Where is everyone?' "Hello? Little Fawn, are you there?" Sierra called as she stopped in front of the teepee.

The deerskin flap opened and Chief Winnemucca exited the teepee. His face was stern when he saw the girl. "You should not be here," he told her.

"I was looking for Little Fawn," Sierra replied feeling slightly nervous under the chief's stern gaze. "She's been helping me break the appaloosa in the corral over there. She was supposed to meet me there, but I didn't see her there today."

"My daughter will not be able to meet you today," the chief said and Sierra thought she heard a sense of sadness in his voice. "Little Fawn is very sick."

"But she'll get better, won't she?" Sierra asked worriedly. The chief looked away and Sierra couldn't help but follow his gaze. Suddenly she knew why the village was so quiet. As she listened carefully, she could hear the sounds of Indian voices chanting, though she could not see them because of the trees. Coughing was heard in almost every teepee in the village, followed by soft muttering of family members.

"I do not know," the chief answered her question softly. "Too many of my people have died. I cannot be sure."

"Wh-What is it?" Sierra asked as she tried to swallow the lump that was in her throat.

"Our shaman does not know," was the chief's reply. "People have bad cough, runny nose, white spots in mouth, red spots all over body, very high fever, light hurts eyes. There was a hunter that passed here a few weeks ago. He also had these maladies."

The man turned away from Sierra. She didn't have to see his face to know he was crying. She felt tears well up in her eyes. Gently she rested her hand on the chief's arm, causing him to look at her in surprise. "I will pray that your people will get better very soon," Sierra told him quietly.

A small smile crossed the man's features as he patted her hand gently. "I thank you, little one," he said. Then he dropped his hand as she removed hers and looked at her. "You should not be here. You might get sick too."

Sierra nodded. "Could you tell Little Fawn that I'll have the horse broken by the time she gets better?" she asked. "Tell her I hope she feels better soon."

The chief nodded. "I will, little one," he assured her. "Now you must go and not come back until I send for you." With a nod, Sierra turned and hurried away from the village.

When she reached the corral, Sierra had tears in her eyes. Little Fawn was sick. It sounded like the measles; there had been an outbreak in one of the nearby towns, though luckily, the doctors had been able to get it under control. From the newspaper article she had read, the symptoms that the chief described were the same. Sierra couldn't remember anyone she knew ever having the measles before, and now it was a strong possibility that Little Fawn could die from it and there was nothing she could do.

_Wait a minute,_ she thought to herself. _There was something she could do. She could pray._ "Dear God, I know I haven't been very obedient lately and I've been deceiving my brothers, but, God, Chief Winnemucca's people are very sick. Please heal them. I know you can do it. Please, God, my friend Little Fawn is very sick. Please…" Sierra broke off into sobs. She wasn't sure how long she had been sitting on the ground crying when she felt something touch her. Startled, she looked up into the appaloosa's black muzzle. With a small smile on her face, she reached up to pet the horse's outstretched nose. "Amen," she whispered as she dropped a kiss on the white blaze in between the horse's eyes. The horse bobbed her head and let out a soft neigh.

With a little giggle, Sierra remembered the reason she was there. "Come on, girl, you remember this, don't you?" she asked the black filly as she slipped the bridle on her face and fastened it before lifting the side saddle onto her back. Slowly she tightened the cinch, all the while whispering to the filly who swiveled her ears back to catch the soothing sound of the girl's voice. Then, ever so slowly, she leaned her weight across the horse's back.

The horse snorted, but made no other move reject the girl's weight. Satisfied that the filly was ready, Sierra moved herself so that she was sitting upright in the saddle and quickly gathered the reins, never ceasing to talk softly to the horse. She knew that if the filly decided to buck, there was little chance that she would be able to stay in the saddle. For a moment, Sierra thought that the filly wasn't going to react to her added weight, but a new voice soon made her change her mind.

"Sierra." It was Hoss' voice. Though he kept his voice low, Sierra knew from his tone that he was upset. From where she was facing, she couldn't see him, but she knew he had to be close. The filly knew it too, and Sierra could feel the tension building under its shiny black coat. "Sierra, get off that horse," Hoss told her quietly.

"Hoss, I can ride her, but you've got to leave," Sierra replied, keeping her voice just as low. "You're scaring her." The horse backed up a few steps and tossed her head in the air. Turning her head slightly, Sierra caught a glimpse of her older brother standing next to the corral fence. It wouldn't be more than a few seconds before the horse saw him too and then Sierra knew she would go wild. "Hoss, please, if she sees you she'll…" The thundering sound of more horses alerted Sierra to the fact that Hoss now wasn't her only audience; now she had much bigger problems to worry about. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Adam and Joe leap from their horses and reach Hoss' side in a matter of few steps.

"Sierra Marie Cartwright! Get down off that horse now!" Like Hoss, Adam's voice was low, but the firmness of the command carried much more fierceness. With a sigh, Sierra slowly moved her leg to swing it over the other side of the saddle when the horse suddenly decided that she'd had enough and let everyone know that by letting out a shrill squeal and reared up.

Waving her forelegs in air, the horse seemed to stay up for hours, though it really was only a matter of seconds. Caught by surprise, Sierra grabbed a handful of the horse's mane as she desperately tried to remain in the saddle. She was vaguely aware of her brothers' shouting instructions to her, but her mind was unable to process their words. Just as she thought she could hold on no longer, she felt the horse's hooves hit the ground and almost let out a sigh of relief before she realized that the worst was far from being over. Having had enough of the rider on her back, the black appaloosa began galloping around her corral, stopping only long enough to punctuate her circuits with sharp bucks. Sierra frantically clung to the horse's neck. She had dropped the reins when she had been caught by surprise. Miraculously, she managed to stay in the saddle for the first few bucks, but the longer she stayed on, the sharper they became. Her sweaty fingers were slipping from the filly's black mane and it seemed as if the filly could sense it. With one last hard buck, Sierra felt her grip slip and she found herself thrown from the saddle.

Hitting the ground with a hard thud, Sierra barely felt the pain from the impact on her shoulder and injured leg, as she immediately began rolling to safety. The sound of the filly hitting the wooden fence was heard just, as Sierra rolled out of the corral under one of the low fences.

Then, everything was silent. Sierra knew she should get up and reassure her brothers that she was all right, but her body was too shaky to comply to her wishes. She felt her breath coming in gasps and realized that she'd had the wind knocked out her when she hit the ground. Her left side began to throb and she became aware of the pounding in her head. Darkness clouded her vision and she fought to remain awake. It was a losing battle, though she realized as she gave up and allowed herself to slip into the arms of unconsciousness.

-/-/-/-/-

**Oh no! Sierra tried to ride the half wild filly and got thrown! Is she going to be all right? How is Adam going to react to the fact that she disobeyed him? Be sure to leave your thoughts in the reviews! And don't forget to leave some more name ideas for the horse! **


	4. Chapter 4

**I am so excited! I cannot believe all the awesome reviews I have been getting! **_**Bobby, BLBLF, gidgetmarie55, littlemom, westernsoul, Rachel L. Driscoll, Aurea, islaboe**_**, and several**_** guests**_**: you guys are amazing! I think I have narrowed down the filly's name, but it's not final yet so ideas are still welcome! **

**Anyway, I may only update today and not Friday since this chapter is the furthest extent I have written and I will be very busy both this week and next week. This chapter is probably one of the longest ones, besides maybe the first chapter. 11 pages! **** I will try to keep up my usual chapter length, but I'm not sure I'll be able too. I will try to at least post something next Monday.**

**So here's the next chapter! Enjoy! **

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

CHAPTER 4

_No, please God, not again_, Adam thought as he ran to his little sister's still form that was lying just outside of the corral. Instantly his mind flashed back to a previous time that he had found her lying unconscious on the ground, though that time a tree had been the cause instead of a horse. She had been lucky to get off with just her permanently injured knee that time; he wasn't sure if she'd be so lucky this time. With his heart in his throat, he felt her wrist for a pulse. It wasn't until he felt the throbbing of her pulse that he realized that he'd been holding his breath. Letting out a huge sigh of relief, he carefully began to check her over for injuries.

"Adam, how is she?" Hoss asked as he and Joe appeared beside them. The sight of Sierra's pale face made their blood run cold.

"I don't think it's too serious," Adam told them, his voice still shaky from the original scare. "She's got a bad bump on the head which is why she's unconscious."

"She must've hit her head on that rock over there when she fell," Joe surmised as he glanced inside the corral.

"Bring me some water," Adam said and Joe jumped up and was back with a canteen in record time. Removing his bandanna from around his neck, Adam soaked it with the water before gently washing his little sister's face. With a quiet moan, Sierra moved her head to the side as she began to come to. "Come on, Sierra, wake up," Adam almost begged her.

Another moan slipped out as the girl slowly opened her eyes.

"A-Adam?" her voice cracked as she let out a light cough. Gently Adam helped her up into a sitting position and put the canteen to her lips.

"Are you hurt, sis?" Joe asked once she had finished her drink.

"My head hurts," Sierra admitted quietly. Truth be known, her right shoulder was throbbing steadily not to mention her leg, but seeing as it was her own fault that she was hurt, Sierra decided to keep that to herself.

"No wonder, that's a pretty good goose egg ya got there," Hoss told her.

"How's your leg?" Adam asked as he gently felt it for injuries.

"Its fine," Sierra lied pushing his prodding hands away. Truth be known, her leg was throbbing painfully and her oldest brother's gentle fingers were only making the pain worse, but she wasn't about to admit that to Adam. The pain was not unbearable, though she could only imagine what her already injured leg would feel like after attempting to walk, not to mention ride a horse.

"I'll bet it won't be 'fine' tomorrow," Joe told her as Adam stood to his feet. Sierra watched him walk away. She knew from the purposeful way he walked that he was angry with her. That was no surprise; she had known he would be angry with her when he found out about her trying to riding the filly he had forbidden her from, though she hadn't counted on him finding out quite like this. She watched as he paced back and forth, his anger evident on his face, before he finally turned to face her.

"What did you think you were doing?" Adam asked, his voice was calm and low, and to a stranger, he would have simply seemed upset. That was one ability that all of his siblings had tried to master without much progress. From the lowness of his voice, Sierra knew that if he had been anyone else he would have been yelling at her.

"I was only trying to break her," Sierra replied dropping her head to study an interesting looking pebble on the ground, her voice just barely audible.

"I can't hear you," Adam said, his tone rising just slightly. She was on shaky ground now and she knew it wouldn't take much to set her oldest brother off.

Sierra raised her head defiantly, returning her oldest brother's fierce glare. "I said 'I was trying to break her'," she repeated.

"You were trying to break her? What on earth would make you do a foolish thing like that?" by this time Adam had lost his calm and his anger was very evident. "You could've injured your leg again and this time it might not have been repairable, if you were even lucky to have survived at all."

"Well I didn't!" Sierra countered hearing the anger beginning to filter into her own voice. "I could've done it if you three hadn't shown up. She trusted me up until you scared her. How did you even know I was here anyway?"

"We followed your tracks," Adam said, fighting for control of his anger. He sent an angry glare at Hoss. "I don't suppose you were in on this?"

"Adam, I had no idea what she was up too," Hoss assured him. "Shucks, I had just ridden in here not long before you two did."

"You were supposed to keep her with you," Adam turned his anger towards his younger brother.

Hoss hung his head. "I'm sorry Adam," he said.

Sierra felt her blood begin to boil. It wasn't enough that he had to baby her but did he have to blame Hoss too? "It wasn't Hoss' fault!" Sierra told Adam in a voice just below a yell. "I told him I was going back to the shack and he let me go. He didn't know where I was really going."

"So let me get this straight; you not only deliberately went against my orders, but you also lied to Hoss? Young lady, you are in some serious hot water." Adam stated, shaking his head. "We'll discuss your punishment later. Get on your horse."

Sierra knew what her punishment was most likely to be and decided to try and pacify his anger. "I'm sorry, Adam, I-" she started but Adam cut her off.

"I said we'll talk about it later. Now get on your horse," he told her as he strode angrily over to where he had left Sport and mounted up. Hoss offered his hand to his sister to help her to her feet, but she angrily pushed it away, rising stiffly by herself as Joe walked over to them leading the other three horses. Heatedly, Sierra jerked her reins from Joe's hand and walked to Phantom's side. She tried to hide the pain she felt in her right shoulder and leg, but all three of her brothers noticed that her usual limp was now more pronounced and the way that she favored her arm. As Joe started to offer to assist her in mounting the horse, Hoss wisely stopped him and shook his head. Their sister felt as if she was already being too babied by their oldest brother and both boys knew that any offered help would only work to fuel her anger more. However, Hoss watched her carefully as Sierra led the gelding over to a low stump before mounting.

The entire way back to the shack, Adam contemplated his sister's punishment. His first intentions had been to give her a good thrashing and let that be the end of it, but after seeing her obvious pain, he realized that the spanking would only intensify her pain and he wasn't sure he wanted do that. However, he had no intention of letting her go unpunished. She had disobeyed him and lied to Hoss, not to mention the fact that she could've gotten herself killed. He knew he probably shouldn't have gotten so angry with her, but he had been afraid.

Adam closed his eyes as the image of her still form lying unmoving in the dirt came back to him. A shiver ran down his spine at the recollection. He remembered how his blood had run cold and another instance flashed into his mind; when she and Joe's mother had been killed.

Marie too had been a daredevil when it came to riding horses. She loved nothing more than to feel the wind flowing through her blonde curls as she galloped at breakneck speed across the grounds of the Ponderosa. He remembered how his father used to scold her about riding too fast; saying that she was going to hurt herself someday. Marie had merely given him her special smile and kissed him, telling him that he worried too much and Ben had returned her smile. He never had been able to stay angry with his young wife for very long.

Adam sighed. Sierra was so much like her mother. Like her, Sierra lived for the horses. Ben had scolded her many times too about riding the horses at dangerous speeds, but like her mother, Sierra had a way about her that seemed to be able to melt her father's heart. Oh, he still punished her, but Adam sometimes felt that he went too easy on her, easier than he had even been on Little Joe. As he thought about it, he realized that they all had a tendency of being very lenient with her. None of them could stand to see her cry, and Adam knew that she had used that fact to her advantage many times as a child. Maybe if they hadn't of been so easy on her when she was younger, she might not have attempted to do what she had earlier. No actually, Adam corrected himself, the reason she acted so fearless was probably something that she had inherited from her mother, seeing as how Joe too tended to act like that at times. Adam couldn't count the number of times he had thought his heart would stop as he had seen the girl race across the fields on a horse. Ever since she had been allowed to get back on horseback a year after the accident, she seemed determined to make up for the time she had spent in recovery. In a matter of weeks after her first ride in a side saddle, she had the horse racing and jumping just like she had done before, paying the side saddle fact no mind.

Slowly, Adam began to feel his anger melt away. He knew he was probably wrong to get so angry with her, but after all, the girl had nearly been killed due to her lack of obedience. A quick glance behind him told Adam that his little sister was still furious with him. He sighed again. This was going to be a long night, not to mention the next couple of days. Sierra could stay angry awhile, and she often went out of her way to make sure that the person she was angry with knew it. At home, Pa always put a stop to it as soon he could. But, Pa wasn't here now and Adam was in charge. How was he supposed to put a stop to her anger when he was the one she was angry with in the first place? He shook his head.

When they reached the shack, Adam pulled his horse to a halt and dismounted before turning to his sister. Like him, she too had dismounted with Joe's unasked for help, though she was purposely keeping her back to her oldest brother. Adam glanced across at Hoss. He had considered asking Hoss about her punishment since it had him that she had lied to, but after noticing the concerned look on his younger brother's face, Adam knew that Hoss would probably be ready to let her off the hook with a simple talking to. Having already tried that approach many times before, Adam knew that the girl needed more punishment than that.

"All right, Sierra, I've decided on your punishment," Adam said calmly, but kept his voice firm, letting her know that he meant business. "You are not to leave this clearing without my permission and then it will only be in the presence of one of us. You will not be allowed to continue the hunting, but will stay here with me and start cleaning and tanning the hides and then preparing the meat for storage." He paused to study his sister's reaction to his words. Tanning the hides and preserving the meat were tasks that were hated by all of them; it was messy and smelly and usually Sierra was excused from them. This time, however, Adam figured that they would serve as sufficient punishment. "Look at me, Sierra," he told her when she remained with her back to him. Slowly, she turned to face him. Her anger was clearly visible in her flashing green eyes. His intention had been to tell her he was only punishing her for her own good and because he loved her, but seeing the firm set of her jaw and the expression on her face, Adam knew that now was not the time for that. She wasn't ready to listen to him say that. So instead he merely handed his horse's reins to her and told her to take care of both her horse and his before he turned to go into the shack.

Having her take care of his horse hadn't been part of Adam's original plan, but it was obvious that she needed some time to cool off without him present. Entering the tiny building, Adam decided that he'd go ahead and cook supper that night. True, he wasn't as good a cook as Sierra was, but he could do a sight better than either of his brothers. As he got out the necessary ingredients, Adam prayed that his brothers would be able to work some of the anger out of his little sister.

-/-/-/-/-/-

It seemed that Adam's plan hadn't worked. The tension in the air that night was so strong it was almost suffocating. Dinner was eaten in silence and the room was tidied up the same way. Hoss and Joe tried to brighten the mood with little jokes, but they both soon gave up after being ignored. Adam only spoke to answer his younger brothers' questions and then it was with short answers. His eyes watched Sierra as she purposely avoided his gaze and ignored his presence as much as possible. He felt himself sighing as all of his attempts to make conversation with her were either ignored or ended as soon as possible. He hated having her mad at him. Part of him considered withdrawing her punishment, but the other part reminded him of how close she had come to getting killed. Besides, he had a feeling that withdrawing her punishment wasn't going to change anything. She was just going to have to work out her anger on her own and Adam hoped that she wouldn't take too long to do it.

-/-/-/-/-/-

By the time she crawled into bed that night, Sierra was exhausted. Collapsing onto the cot, she sat rubbing liniment on her injured leg, grimacing as she reached particularly sore spots. The bruises on her right side had darkened to a purplish-blue color and she knew her shoulder was going to be even stiffer in the morning, not to mention the pain that had seemed to double in her injured leg. Her entire body ached, but Sierra passed it off as part of the side effects from her fall. She sniffled and wiped her nose. The change in the weather had caused her to develop a slight cold.

"Sierra?" she heard Adam call softly through the curtain. Sierra held back a sigh. The last thing she wanted to do right then was talk to Adam. She knew he didn't like it when she was angry with him, neither she for that matter, but she just wasn't ready to apologize to him yet. Apologizing seemed like saying he had been right and there was no way she was ever going to admit that… well, at least not anytime soon. Considering how angry he had been with her at first, Sierra had been surprised at being let off without the normal thrashing. "Please, Sierra, I want to talk to you," Adam's voice came again. He sounded genuinely sorry and for a moment, Sierra felt her anger start to fade away. Then she remembered the recent events and changed her mind.

"Come in," she told him keeping her voice emotionless as she slid down under her covers. Adam pushed back the curtain as he entered and gently sat at the foot of her small cot. For a moment he didn't say anything and Sierra began to wonder if he ever would. But then he broke the silence.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I'm fine," she replied. Again there was silence.

"How's your leg?" Adam asked her. Sierra shrugged her shoulders again.

"Fine," she answered.

"You did a good job brushing Sport tonight, I wanted to thank you for that," Adam told her.

"He's a good horse," Sierra said ignoring her older brother's praise as they again lapsed into silence.

"Sierra, I'm sorry I got so angry with you today, but I just got scared. You could've really gotten-"

"I could've really gotten hurt," Sierra finished, cutting him off. "Yeah, yeah, I know." She heard Adam sigh.

"Well, I guess I'll be going to bed," he said, standing after a few minutes of silence. He paused with his hand on the curtain and turned back to look at her. "Good night, Littlin', I love you."

"'Night Adam," Sierra replied. She heard Adam wait for a few seconds, before he finally pushed through the curtain. The light in the small room soon went out and she listened to the voices of her brothers as they said good night to each other. Tears pricked Sierra's eyes. Hearing him call her by that special nickname had almost broken through her stubborn resolve. Each of her brothers had special names for her that they had thought up throughout the years, but Adam had been calling her 'littlin' as far back as she could remember. It was a name that held every bit of his affection for her and was never used any other way. She wanted nothing more than to call Adam back and allow him to hold her in his strong embrace, but her Cartwright stubbornness refused to let her.

Her hand reached up to clasp the silver locket that hung around her neck. Though Sierra had only been two years old, the heart-shaped locket had been a gift to her from Adam just before he had left for college. Inside he had placed two pictures; the one side had a photograph of the three Cartwright boys and Sierra which had taken at Adam's insistence just a week before he had left for college. The other side had a picture of their father and Marie, taken just after they were married before they left New Orleans. Sierra treasured the locket; she never went without it. What made it even more special to her was the fact that the locket had belonged to Adam's mother Elizabeth. During the four years Adam had been away, the locket had served as a reminder of the older brother that she barely remembered and of her mother who she remembered even less. Many times the locket had brought her comfort and tonight was no different. Rolling onto her right side and gripping the locket tightly in her hand, Sierra curled up into a ball, burying her head in the pillow in an attempt to muffle her sobs, as she cried herself to sleep.

-/-/-/-/-/-

The silence the next day was almost unbearable. Adam had elected himself the job of staying back at the shack with his angry, stubborn sister, sending Hoss and Joe off to do some more hunting. The weather had turned colder and Adam knew that it would probably snow before the next day. Sierra had quietly begun her assigned task of tanning the hides. She struggled with the weight of the skins as she lifted then into the large boiler. Adam figured she must still be a bit sore from her fall, so he soon decided to help her. If he had hoped to get a thank you, he was disappointed, because the girl barely acknowledged him all day. Adam tried several times to start a conversation, but each time he was unsuccessful. Though he knew she had tried to hide them, he had heard her cry herself to sleep the night before and the sounds had broken his heart. But he also knew that there was nothing he could do to help her unless she allowed him to.

That night, Sierra found that she was even more tired than she had been the day before. Her cold had slowly worsened and she felt it beginning to settle in her chest, causing her to have a light cough. As she crawled into bed that night, she could barely keep her eyes open and by the time Adam came to tuck her in, she was fast asleep.

-/-/-/-/-/-

_Fire, she was burning up. It was snowing outside so why was it so hot? And why am I soaking wet? Wait, is there a leak over my bed?_ _But the water wasn't cold; instead it was just as hot as she was. Someone must have dumped water on me. It must have been Joe. His favorite way to wake her up in the morning was to dump water on her. Ooh, I'm going to get him this time!_

"Joe!" Sierra called out as she jerked upright on her cot still half asleep, expecting to see her eighteen year old brother's mischievous grin staring down at her. Opening her eyes, she was surprised to find that it was still dark outside. Hoss' loud snores told her that he was still asleep and as she listened closely, she could just barely make out the sounds of Adam and Joe's quiet snores.

_Why was it so hot in the shack? Couldn't the boys feel the heat? Or was she the only one sweating?_ A feeling of dizziness swept over and Sierra rested her head in her hands. Her hand jerked back in surprise as she felt the heat radiating from her damp forehead. She was burning up. Pushing back the dark strands of hair that were sticking to her face, Sierra sniffled, setting off a round of coughing and she pressed her hands to her mouth in an effort to muffle the sound. The coughing left her breathless and exhausted. She had to get out of the shack. The sweltering heat made her head feel as if it were about to explode if she didn't.

Slowly, Sierra reached a shaky hand out, feeling the floor for where she had laid her crutches and quietly lifting them up onto the cot. Not daring to slip on her brace for fear of waking her brothers with the noise, she quietly slipped on her socks, boots, and coat before positioning the crutches under her arms. As silent as possible, Sierra crept out the door of the shack. The freezing night air hit her in the face, setting off another round of coughing as she wearily swung herself across the clearing on her crutches to sink down in exhaustion on a stump that stood near the small barn. The frigid wind blew savagely across her face and Sierra shivered despite the fact that she was still sweating from the fever. Her tired eyes ached and the bright light from the moon didn't help them much. Realizing the dryness in her throat, Sierra rose from the stump on shaky legs and, positioning the crutches under her arms, she made her way over to the rain barrel next to the barn door. She leaned against the wall as she removed the wooden cover and raised the dipper to her dry lips, drinking thirstily. Breathing in deep breaths of the night air, Sierra returned the dipper to the barrel and gasped as the moonlight fell across the surface of the water, clearly revealing her reflection.

Spots! Her face was covered in bright red spots! Sierra felt her knees grow weak and she sank down onto a large block of wood. Suddenly, the pieces all seemed to fit together. The runny nose, the coughing, the fever: she had assumed it was nothing but a bad cold. But the splotches on her face said otherwise. She had measles! Fear gripped her heart as she remembered everything she had heard about the disease. She knew it could often be fatal especially to babies and adults over twenty._ Adults over twenty_, she stopped cold as the thought repeated in her mind. Joe was eighteen so it shouldn't be too bad on him, but both Hoss and Adam were over twenty. All of the sudden, she wasn't worried about herself, but she knew she had to keep her oldest brothers from catching the disease. There was only one way to do that, get away from the shack.

Not stopping to think clearly, Sierra pushed herself up from her wooden seat and used her crutches to widen the crack in the ill-fitting barn door. The inside of the small barn was quite warm, but Sierra didn't notice; it took all of her concentration to swing her weary body on the crutches across the small space between the door and the stall where the gray gelding Phantom was standing.

"Hey, boy," Sierra whispered to him breathlessly as she removed the bridle from its hook beside the stall and slipped it onto the gelding's face. Phantom replied with a soft whiny and a gentle nudge to her shoulder which would have knocked the precariously balanced girl over had she not grabbed onto the wall.

Moving inside the stall to the gelding's side, Sierra leaned back against the wooden stall divider wall, as she slowly lifted the saddle blanket and then the sidesaddle onto the gentle gelding's back. Reaching into her saddle bags which hung on the wall behind her, she was relieved to find the change of clothes that she had placed there the beginning of the week. Quickly as possible, Sierra changed out of her flannel nightgown and into her button-up cream colored shirt and the borrowed tan pants before reaching for her brace which lay on the Hoss' small workbench next to the stall. Her unexpected tumble the other day had broken one of the metal strips which Hoss had been able to fix and luckily for her, he had forgotten the brace in the barn afterwards. Now she fastened the brace on her leg over the top of her pants before standing slowly to her feet and leading Phantom towards the door. Pausing momentarily by the door to grab her hat which had somehow ended up in the barn the previous night, Sierra set it on her head before continuing out of the barn.

Soft white snowflakes had begun to fall unnoticed during the short time Sierra had been inside the warm barn. Still, she paid no attention as she led the gray gelding over to the stump she earlier used as a resting place. Using the stump as a step, Sierra carefully climbed onto the side saddle. She paused a moment as the effort of mounting brought on another wave of dizziness. The freezing wind had also picked up speed, catching strands of her long dark brown hair and whipping them wildly around her face as it threatened to dislodge her light brown hat from her head. Sending one last look back at the warm shack, Sierra sent the gelding away from the clearing, not daring to go any faster than a walk.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Several hours later, Adam awoke with the strong feeling that something was wrong. Puzzled, he lay in his bunk and stared up at the underside of Joe's bunk, listening to Hoss' loud snores from the bunk at his feet. _What could be causing that feeling?_ he wondered. _Obviously its not Hoss'_, Adam thought with a wry smile as he raised his head to glance at his larger brother, who was sleeping with his arm flung over the side of the bed, his mouth wide open. _Joe? _Adam debated briefly as he strained his ears, trying to caught any sound coming from his youngest brother overhead. After a few seconds he barely made out the teenager's quiet moans as he too slept deeply. _Maybe its Sierra,_ Adam thought as he slowly raised himself from his bed. There were no sounds coming from behind the curtain that divided his little sister's space from the rest of the shack, but that was nothing unusual. Unlike their brothers, Sierra was generally a silent sleeper. Slowly, Adam eased himself up from his bunk and shuffled across the wooden floor to push aside the curtain, stopping short at what he saw- or didn't see as the case was.

"Joe! Hoss!" Adam called as he quickly surveyed the area behind the curtain. It was plain to see that she had left in a hurry; the covers were thrown back and one blanket was lying in a heap on the floor. Both her crutches and her brace were gone. _Maybe she just stepped outside for a moment_, Adam told himself as he tried to quell the fear that he felt building up inside of him.

Not surprisingly, neither of his brothers had heard him call them and both were still sound asleep, though, by now Adam was wide awake. Quickly he shoved his stocking-clad feet into his boots and threw on his yellow coat before opening the door, gasping in surprise at the sight that met his eyes. Everything outside of the little shack had been covered by a white blanket. Adam stepped out into the snow to test its deepness, finding it only a few inches deep. Remembering the purpose for coming outside, he searched the area hoping to uncover some kind of sign that would reassure him that his sister was nearby. He was in no such luck. The only footprints that marred the surface of the snow were his. Seeing the door to the barn standing wide open, the oldest Cartwright boy approached the small building. Upon entering, Adam immediately noticed the absence of Sierra's gentle gelding, Phantom. Her crutches and the discarded flannel nightgown only added to his conclusion; for some unknown reason, Sierra Cartwright had decided to go for a ride in the middle of the night.

"Hoss! Joe!" Adam called loudly as he burst into the warm shack. He rushed over to where his brothers lay fast asleep on their bunks and shook both of them roughly. "Sierra's gone!"

"Huh?" Joe groaned out, not fully awake.

"What?" Hoss jerked upright on his bed, momentarily forgetting about the bunk above him only to be reminded as he bumped his head. "Ouch! Dadburnit, Adam, what's the point of running in here like you's got Indians on tail fer? It's too early for loud noises."

Joe snickered. "Try telling yourself that for a change," he muttered.

"What's that s'posed ta mean?" Hoss inquired, giving Joe a suspicious look as he continued to rub the small bump on his head.

"Oh, nothin', just with all of your snoring it's a wonder any of us can get any sleep at night," was Joe's response.

"I don't snore," Hoss protested firmly.

"Sure you don't, big brother," Joe replied sarcasm evident in his voice. "Must've been your twin brother then."

"Stop it, both of you!" Adam yelled, causing both of his younger brothers to drop their argument immediately and turn their attention toward their older brother. Both Hoss and Joe were surprised to see that Adam, having taken advantage of the time during their argument, was completely dressed.

"Hey, older brother, what's your hurry?" Joe wondered and was met with a frustrated glare from Adam.

"Didn't you hear a word that I said?" he asked them. Both boys shook their heads. Adam let out a longsuffering sigh. "Sierra's missing."

"Missing?" the two boys repeated together as both jumped from their beds and hurriedly began dressing.

"That's right," Adam confirmed then he held up his hand to ward off the volley of questions that he knew was coming. "And before you say anything, I don't know how long she's been gone for but she had to have left when we were sleeping. Phantom's gone too."

"Why would she go for a ride in the middle of the night?" Hoss wondered.

"Yeah, and where would she go anyway?" Joe added.

"I've got an idea," Adam told them.

"Where?" Joe asked.

"That Indian filly," Adam stated. Hoss and Joe exchanged glances. They had to admit that Sierra had pulled some pretty dangerous stunts within the last few weeks, but it didn't make any sense why she would take off in the middle of the night just to go see a horse that had just thrown her.

"I don't know, Adam," Hoss said dubiously. "That just don't sound like somethin' she'd do."

"You didn't think she'd try to ride a half-wild filly by herself either did you?" Adam countered.

"Surely she wouldn't try to ride her again, would she?" Joe wondered as he shoved his arms into the sleeves of his thick winter coat.

"With her, there's no telling what she'll do next," Adam replied. "Of all the dumb tricks! When I get my hands on that girl…" Though he didn't finish his threat, both Hoss and Joe knew that the sternness and anger in his voice was only an attempt to cover up his worry. They had both heard Adam promise their father to keep their stubborn, strong-willed sister safe. If anything happened to Sierra, they both knew that Adam would blame himself. Both of the younger Cartwright boys exchanged a worried glance as they followed their oldest brother out into the cold.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

**Oh, no! Sierra's sick with the measles and now she's out in the cold somewhere! Where was she going? How will her brothers react when they find her? Will they be able to find her before the weather turns for the worst? Let me know your thoughts in the review section! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, I know that this chapter is really short but I figured that I'd go ahead and post it. Not sure if I will be able to update again between now and next Monday as I will be gone for most of the weekend starting on Friday, but I will try to make the next chapter a little longer. **

**Once again I want to thank all of my readers and everyone who reviewed; y'all will never know how much your reviews mean to me. I look forward to hearing all of your thoughts and suggestions.**

**Anyway, here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it!**

-/-/-/-/-/-

Chapter 5

The freezing wind was blowing hard, whirling the blinding white snow around, which when coupled with the fact that sun was rapidly setting was making it impossible for anyone to see more than a foot in front of them. Sierra trudged slowly through the wall of white that surrounded her on every side, her leather boots sinking into the thick blanket that covered the frozen ground. Though the tracks she left were deep, the wind seemed determined to cover all traces of her pathway, as it rapidly filled in the holes almost as soon as she had removed her boot. A coughing spell hit her, leaving her breathless once it had passed. She was exhausted. Her body was already worn out from trying to fight off the illness that currently plagued her; fighting against the wind and snow had quickly zapped the little bit of energy and strength she'd had left. It didn't help much that the wet snow had settled into the metal joint of Sierra's leg brace and had frozen, adding to the girl's difficulty in limping through the heavy snowstorm. Maybe it would have been better if she had fitted the brace on underneath the pants that she'd borrowed from her older brother Joe. At least then the cloth might have kept some of the wetness away from the metal and perhaps keeping it from freezing. Wearily, she tightened her grip on the halter of the gentle gelding beside her, as if it was the only thing that was keeping her on feet. The old gelding let out a soft whiny and gently nudged the girl's shoulder. Though he was gentle, had Sierra not had a good grip on the halter, she would have fallen over onto her face in the snow.

By now, Sierra had realized how foolish she was to have taken off on her own;, no matter what her reasons had been. Never had she given a second thought about where she had been headed when she had left the night before; the fever having muffled her thinking. It hadn't been until Sierra had realized that she was lost in the blizzard had she wondered where she was actually going. Silently, she prayed that her brothers would soon discover her missing and come after her. Then another thought hit her. Even if they were already out searching for her, there was no telling how long it would be before they found her. Not even Hoss could track her in this weather; the blinding wall of snow was making sure of that. More than likely, it would be hours before she was found. She couldn't count on finding her own way either.

Wiping the sweat from her feverish forehead with the sleeve of her coat, Sierra absently reached up to pat the gelding's nose. "It's… okay… boy," she managed to wheeze out breathlessly. She considered trying to pull herself back into the sidesaddle again, but seeing as there was nothing within sight that would serve as a step, Sierra quickly decided against it. More than anything, she longed to stop and allow her worn out body the rest it craved; but she knew that she would never be able to get herself going again if she stopped. And besides, she knew she would run a greater risk of freezing to death sitting still than she did moving. The numbness in her hands and feet was unnoticed as was the fact that her black snow-covered hat had long since disappeared from her head. Fighting to draw enough air to fill her lungs, Sierra continued her slow trek through the blinding blizzard.

-/-/-/-/-/-

"Sierra!" Adam called as he bent his head against the savage wind. He shoved his hat firmly down on his head and tugged at the collar of his coat, trying to block as much of the wind as possible. A soft snort was heard and Adam reached down to gently give his black horse a pat on the neck. Behind him, Adam could hear the faint voices of his two younger brothers as they frantically called their sister's name into the swirling wall of white. None of them had a clue as to exactly how long they had been searching, though they all knew it had been several hours.

As the three brothers had ridden away from the shack that morning, the first place they headed was the Paiute village. Adam was convinced that Sierra had gone up there to see the black appaloosa filly after she had been forbidden to do so. Though Hoss and Joe had had their doubts about his theory, neither of them had said a word as they followed him through the lightly falling snow. Needless to say, it was of no surprise to them to find that their little sister had not been to the village that morning. As the day wore on and despite their searching no sign of Sierra had been uncovered, a feeling of panic began to fall over three Cartwright boys. Thanks to the ever growing snowstorm, all hopes of tracking her were lost. With their chances of finding Sierra shrinking rapidly, they realized that their only hope of finding the girl would be pure luck.

Suddenly, a faint shout caught Adam's attention. "Adam! I found something!" Quickly, Adam whirled Sport around and headed back towards where his brothers were. Joe was still astride his pinto, Cochise while Hoss had dismounted, having haphazardly dropped Chubb's reigns in the snow, and was now hurriedly digging in the snow in front of them.

"Hoss, what is it?" Adam asked as he pulled Sport to a halt beside Joe. Wordlessly, Hoss held up his discovery for both of his brothers to see. Adam felt as if his heart had stopped as his realized what his brother was holding: Sierra's black hat. Jumping down from the saddle, Adam grabbed the hat from Hoss' hand, turning it over in his hand and examining it for some clue as to his sister's whereabouts. Raising his dark eyes to meet Hoss' blue ones, he nodded towards the snow bank. "Is… there's nothing else…?"

Hoss shook his head, knowing full well the question that his brother was afraid to put into words.

"No, just her hat," he assured him, resting one of his large hands gently on his older brother's shoulder. A sigh of relief escaped Adam's lips at Hoss' words.

"At least we know that we're on the right track," Joe stated as his brothers once again mounted their horses.

"That ain't exactly true, Joe," Hoss told him. "This wind coulda carried that hat from anywhere."

Adam knew that Hoss was right, common sense told him that. With the way the wind was moving, finding the hat there did not necessarily mean that Sierra had passed this way. But something inside him was telling him that they were on the righ path and for once, Adam pushed aside his common sense and followed his gut.

"Hoss, how long would you say that hat had been there for?" Adam wondered.

"Hmm, maybe about an hour if that long with the way the snow's piling up," Hoss replied thoughtfully.

"Come on, we can't be that far behind her," Adam said as he kicked Sport into a walk.

-/-/-/-/-/-

It was now beginning to grow dark. Joe was sure that it had been much longer than an hour since they had found Sierra's hat buried in the snow bank. His fingers were numb and so were his feet. Though he had dismounted and tried jogging beside Cochise in an effort to get warm, he had quickly abandoned that idea. Fighting off the urge to sleep was a little easier to do when he was on his feet instead of riding so he had continued walking. The blizzard was still in full force. Glancing up ahead, Joe was instantly thankful for the lanterns that they had brought with them. With the snow swirling the way it was it would have been impossible for him to see which direction his brothers were headed if it had not been for the light of their lanterns.

Beside him, Joe heard Cochise let out a little whiny. A faint reply came back a few minutes later. Assuming that the horse was merely calling to Chubb or Sport, Joe gave him a loving pat on the neck. "It's ok, boy," Joe told the pinto. The horse's reply was to give another whiny. Again, a reply was heard, only this time, Joe realized that the sound came from a direction other then in front of him. Turning towards the direction that the sound had come from, Joe's eyes carefully searched the area as far as the wall of snow allowed him to. He hadn't taken more than a few steps when he stumbled and tripped over something. He felt a gentle nuzzle on his shoulder. "I'm all right, Cooch," he assured the horse as he reached up to pet the horse's nose. But as he did, he caught sight of the horse that was standing beside his pinto. Even in a blizzard, there was no mistaking the gentle gray gelding. "Phantom!" Joe said excitedly as the gelding approached him.

_Wait a minute! Sierra had taken Phantom with her_. Joe thought to himself. _So that means that if he's here, she can't be far away. _Suddenly he remembered having stumbled over something half covered in the snow. With his heart in his throat, Joe bent and quickly began pushing aside the snow to reveal this little sister's half frozen form.

"Sierra!" Joe exclaimed as he drew his sister up into his arms. Tearing his gloves from his fingers, Joe pressed a shaking hand to her neck and was relieved to feel the faint throb of her pulse beneath his fingers. Through the dim light, he could barely make out the blue tint of her lips as well as some angry red blotches of her face. He knew that the blue tint was from the cold, but it was the red spots that scared him more. "Come on, Sis, wake up," Joe said, his voice trembling as he patted his sister's frozen cheeks in an effort to try and wake her up. No response. "Adam! Hoss! Come quick! I found her!" he shouted into the wind. Glancing up, he realized that he could no longer see the light from his brothers' lanterns. _They probably can't hear me,_ Joe muttered to himself.

Quickly he pulled his pistol out of his holster, thankful that it had miraculously been kept dry, and pointing it into the air over his head, he shot two quick shots followed by three more shots.

-/-/-/-/-/-

The first succession of shots had pulled the two older Cartwright brothers to a halt in their weary trudge.

"What was that?" Hoss asked in surprise.

"Sounded like gunfire to me," Adam replied as stood listening. Three more shots were heard.

"That must be Joe! He must be trying to signal us!" Hoss exclaimed as he climbed back onto Chubb and noticed his older brother still standing as if he was frozen in place. "Well, come on, Adam. Maybe he's found Sierra!" With that, Adam shook himself out of his daze and quickly mounted Sport before following Hoss' lead back the way they had come. It wasn't long before the light from Joe's lantern came into view. Both boys leaped from their horses before they had come to a stop and knelt in the snow beside where Joe sat holding Sierra.

"Sierra!"Hoss said excitedly as Adam pulled the girl from his youngest brother's grasp. He felt for her pulse and, like Joe, found it weak.

"We've got to get her back to the shack," Adam told his brother's. "Hoss, do you have any idea where we are?"

"I don't think we're too far from the shack," Hoss replied. "I recognized a stand of trees a little way back as we passed them. Shouldn't be more than a ten minute ride."

"Good, Joe, get the blanket from behind my saddle," Adam said. Within a matter of seconds, Joe was back with the blanket.

"I found an extra pair of gloves and a scarf in your saddle bags too," Joe told him as Adam wrapped the blanket tightly around Sierra's frozen body before taking the scarf from his brother's outstretched hand. Joe slipped the gloves over their sister's hands as Adam carefully arranged the woolen scarf around her face and neck.

"Thanks, Joe. Take her for a minute, will you Hoss?" Adam asked his larger brother who gently lifted the still form of their sister easily into his arms. Adam stood quickly as his cold limbs would allow him too and climbed into Sport's saddle before reaching down for Sierra. Carefully, Hoss helped his brother situate the frozen girl in front of him before mounting Chubb. Seeing that they had everything under control, Joe grabbed Phantom's trailing, snow covered reigns and mounted Cochise. "Hoss, you lead," Adam said and Hoss nodded as he nudged Chubb into a walk.

-/-/-/-/-

Despite Hoss' prediction of a ten minute ride, it took all of half an hour before the four Cartwrights rode into the clearing in front of the line shack. Hoss and Joe jumped down off of their horses and rushed over to help Adam with their sister. As it turned out though, once Adam had climbed off of Sport, he took Sierra from Hoss' arms.

"Help Joe with the horses," he told his larger brother, as he quickly carried his sister into the shack.

By the time Joe and Hoss had feed and bedded down the horses for the night, Adam had Sierra warm and dry. The blue tint had disappeared from her skin as well as Adam's fear of frostbite. Though she was still unconscious, what was really worrying the brothers were her high fever and the red spots on their sister's pale face.

"Do you know what it is?" Joe asked Adam worriedly.

"I have an idea," Adam replied as he replaced the damp cloth on Sierra's forehead with a cool one.

"What is it?" Hoss pressed.

"I think its measles," Adam stated.

Joe and Hoss exchanged a frightened glance behind their brother's back. "But ain't none of us been around anybody with measles," Hoss pointed out.

"Doesn't really matter how she caught it, the important thing now is to treat it," Adam told them. "We need to get her fever down first."

"But Adam, you shouldn't be around her," Joe protested.

"And just why not?" his oldest brother asked testily.

"Me and Hoss have already had measles, but you never have," Joe reminded him.

"Joe's right, Adam," Hoss agreed. "The last thing we need is for you to get sick too."

Adam turned to face his brothers. He could see their concern for both him and Sierra written on their faces and he knew that they were making sense, but he knew that there was no way that he would be able to just sit and let them tend to her. He knew the risk that he was taking on himself, but he also knew how great the threat of Sierra developing pneumonia was and that neither of his brothers knew much about how to treat either illness. His promise to his father came back to him: _Don't worry, Pa, I'll keep her safe. _

"No, I have to tend to her," Adam told them firmly. "I promised Pa that I'd keep her safe. It has to be me that tends to her."

Joe opened his mouth to protest more, but after being met with Adam's stubborn glare, he quickly changed his mind. It was obvious that Adam had his mind made up and no amount of arguing from either of his brothers would change his mind.

"All right, Adam, if that's the way you want it," Hoss gave in with a sigh. "Just tell us what we can do to help."

Adam managed a tiny smile, grateful that his brothers had given in fairly easily, as they prepared for the long night ahead of them.

-/-/-/-/-/-

**Yay! They found Sierra! But oh no, she's sick! At least Adam knows how to help her but he's never had the measles before and he's obviously not going sit back and watch as his younger brothers tend her. Do you think he'll get sick? Or do you think Adam's fears will prove true and Sierra will develop pneumonia? Be sure to let me know your thoughts in the reviews!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, I know that its been a little more than a month since I've updated but I've been really bsy lately! I know that's a lousy excuse but I am really sorry! Hopefully I'll be able to update once a week like before but no promises. I do have an awesome idea for another story after this one so I am kinda anxious to finish this one and start the next one.**

**Anyway, I want to thank all of my readers and everyone who reviewed; y'all will never know how much your reviews mean to me. I look forward to hearing all of your thoughts and suggestions.**

**Okay so here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it!**

-/-/-/-/-/-

Chapter 6

For the next several hours, both Joe and Hoss kept Adam supplied with cool, damp cloths to put on their sister's burning hot forehead, desperately praying for the fever to break. They watched as Adam tried to spoon as much water and broth into her as she would take. By dawn the next morning, Adam's fear of pneumonia had proven true; her fever had risen even more during the night and a wheezing sound could now be heard when she breathed.

None of the brothers said anything as they stared down at the small pale form that lay on the cot moaning softly. Adam had repeatedly refused to allow his brothers to spell him, and stubbornly remained by the girl's bedside. He tried to hide the majority of his worry from his younger brothers, but the deepening lines on his forehead and the growing circles under his eyes told them more than his words did. To Hoss and Joe, Adam was educated and knew a lot about different illnesses; if he was worried about Sierra, then that meant that she was very sick. When they had heard her breathing change during the night, both brothers knew that it was something much more serious than measles. Each of them had their own speculations as to what it might be, but neither of knew for sure, and neither was brave enough to voice them.

Although it was warm inside the little shack, outside the storm was still raging. The snow had continued to fall during the night until now it was several feet deep. Visibility was almost impossible and earlier that morning; Joe had rigged up a rope to guide him and Hoss back and forth from the barn and the shack to the cabin, so that they could tend to the horses.

By the end of the day, any hopeful doubt as to whether or not Sierra had pneumonia had vanished. The wheezing sound in her chest had worsened; her chest rattled as her whole diaphragm and stomach rose to get air in and out of her body. It was obvious that it was hard for her to breathe. She still had not woken up yet, though that was no big surprise to Adam, seeing as her temperature was still very high.

"Supper's ready, Adam," Joe quietly informed his older brother. "Why don't you let me sit with her awhile so you can go eat?"

Adam shook his head. "I'm not hungry," he replied.

"Adam, you've got to eat something," Joe insisted.

"I'm not hungry, Joe," Adam repeated firmly in a tone that meant 'end-of-conversation.'

Joe sighed loudly but said nothing to push the subject further. He quietly joined Hoss at the rickety table and both of them ate their dinner in silence.

Adam stared down at Sierra's small form lying on the cot in front of him. He hated seeing her sick; she looked so little and helpless. Her lightly tanned skin was now a deathly pale color; the angry red blotches that marred it stood out brightly against the white of her skin. Her face was damp and her brown tendrils were plastered to her forehead and the sides of her face. The rest of her hair had long since worked itself out of its usual braid and was now scattered around on the pillow.

Tears came to Adam's eyes as a similar picture came to his mind. Although it had happened nearly two years ago, to Adam, it could have happened yesterday.

FLASHBACK

"Come on, Adam! Hurry up before we get soaked!" thirteen year old Sierra called back over her shoulder from where she was riding Blackie. The sky was beginning to darken and thunder rumbled loudly overhead. No lightning had been sighted so far, but Sierra knew that it was only a matter of time before it would begin to flash and the rain would fall.

"We're already soaked; a little more water won't hurt us. Hold your horses," Adam replied.

It was the middle of monsoon season, and Ben had sent Adam and Sierra to check on one of the herds. It had been raining torrents for days and everyone had been glad to see a break in the weather that morning. Adam was glad he had told Sierra to ride Blackie instead of her pony, Paint. The rain had washed out the land in many places and the smaller pony would have had a difficult time crossing the muddy terrain not to mention the now rising angry river.

After having to rescue several cows from the river's clutches, both Cartwrights were anxious to get home and into some clean dry clothes. Sierra was riding ahead, having kicked Blackie into a slightly faster pace than Adam had Sport. Though, he would have liked to kick Sport into a gallop and race his little sister home, Adam knew that wouldn't be a wise thing to do. The rain had made the ground muddy and slippery with its rivers of various sizes running throughout it.

"Be careful. Slow down, Sierra," Adam called to his sister.

"Oh Adam, you're such a worry wart!" was her reply. "Next to Paint, Blackie's one of the best horses we got. He'll make sure we get home safe."

"It doesn't matter how good Blackie is," Adam told her firmly. "Any horse, no matter how well-trained they are, could lose its footing and fall in all of this mud."

Seeing that Sierra still had no intention of slowing her horse, Adam felt his temper rising. Taking a deep breath, he slowly counted to ten before attempting to 'persuade' his headstrong little sister to listen to him. "I'm serious, Sierra. You need to slow him down."

With still no reaction from Sierra, Adam's temper soared; that was the last straw.

All day long, it had seemed to him that Sierra was just trying to test his patience. Several times she had deliberately ignored his instructions and instead simply done her own thing. Luckily, there had been no drastic consequences to her disobediences. Now it looked like she intended on continuing to disregard his words and Adam had had enough of it.

"Sierra Marie Cartwright, if you don't slow that horse down, you're going to find yourself riding double with me." Adam kept his voice calm, but there was no mistaking the firmness in his voice.

Sierra pondered his words and his tone. She could deal with riding double, especially since he'd have to catch her before he could put her on his horse with him, and there was no way Adam would push his horse faster than he thought safe just to punish her. Or would he? And what about when they got home? Was he upset enough with her to really punish her? At that thought, a tingle of discomfort from last week's punishment episode answered her question. Considering the way she had been acting all day, yes, he probably would.

"This is your last warning, young lady," Adam's stern voice penetrated her thoughts. "If you don't slow that horse, you'll have more than just saddle soreness to deal with."

With an over-exaggerated sigh, Sierra reluctantly reined Blackie to a slow trot, making sure to keep him just a head in front of her brother's horse, Sport. Adam had gotten so bossy lately. Sierra couldn't truthfully say that she was surprised by his reaction to her, though since she had been rather difficult that day. She wasn't sure why she had acted that way; maybe it was the weather that was making her so antsy. Since it had been raining almost nonstop for the past two weeks, riding had been out of the question. Though the Ponderosa ranch house was quite large, after being kept inside for two weeks, it had begun to feel much smaller. What a welcome relief it had been to get out into the fresh air, even if rain clouds were still covering the ever darkening sky.

A slight rain began to fall which rapidly increased in volume. Both Cartwrights tugged their slickers closer in a fruitless effort to keep dry. Lightning flashed overhead as it lite up the gray sky. Thunder crashed and echoed loudly in their ears. Their quarrel suddenly forgotten, Sierra gladly allowed Adam to take the lead as she pulled Blackie up to match Sport's slow gait.

"Stick close to me!" Adam yelled over the sound of the increasing wind and rain.

Sierra shouted her reply, but she doubted he had heard her over the crash of thunder that suddenly erupted. The rain was making it difficult to see and though Adam was merely a few feet in front of her, he could have been yards away. It was impossible to scan the ground for safe terrain and Sierra found herself trusting her horse's instincts. Every few minutes, she heard Adam stop and call back to her, making sure she was still following.

Thunder crashed deafeningly overhead, and Sierra felt a funny tingle down her arms as the hair on them stood on end. Before Sierra could stop and think, an echoing crackle was heard as a large bolt of lightning struck one of the nearby trees. Thankfully it was raining so it wouldn't start on fire. Just as Sierra began to sigh in the relief of not being struck by the lightening, the unmistakable cracking sound made her heartbeat quicken again. The tree was falling!

Frantically, Sierra kicked Blackie into a faster gait in an attempt to escape the falling timber's path. Obediently, Blackie sped up as if he understood his rider's thoughts. Glancing over her shoulder, Sierra gasped as she realized the size of the tree. It had to be one of the tallest ponderosa pines with its branches at least ten feet in length. Jerking the reins sharply, Sierra whirled Blackie to the right. That was her mistake. The sudden change in direction had caused the horse to lose his footing and slip on the muddy ground.

They were falling! Sierra felt Blackie's hoofs come out from underneath him and saw the muddy ground approaching them too quickly for her to react. Blackie's shoulder came in contact with the ground, the force throwing Sierra free from the saddle. She felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her lungs as her back slammed up against the ground. Then she glanced up and the sight of the gigantic falling pine approaching her with rapidly increasing speed brought back all the air she needed to let out an earsplitting scream, just before the tree landed with a resounding CRASH!

-/-/-/-/-/-

Adam had been intently studying the terrain, trying to locate the fastest way home in the pelting rain when Sierra's scream reached his ears. His head jerked around as he searched for his sister's mounted form behind him.

"Sierra!" Adam yelled, as he turned Sport around and slowly retraced his steps, calling his sister's name the entire time. After what seemed like an eternity, Sport came to a halt and refused to go any further. Dismounting, Adam soon found the reason for the horse's refusal; the fallen pine tree. His heart began to beat faster as possibilities began to flash through his mind. "Stop it!" Adam told himself firmly. "First things first; I've got to find Sierra."

"Sierra! Sierra Marie Cartwright, you answer me right now!" with baited breath, Adam paused praying for some kind of a response.

Then, faintly he heard something. It was too faint to tell where it came from or to be sure that it was Sierra though. He called again, hoping for a louder reply.

"Here, Adam." That time there was no mistaking the voice. It was Sierra and it sounded like it came from further down the tree. Slowly, Adam began to feel his way down the trunk of the tree towards the location where he had heard the voice.

"Are you alright?" Adam asked his sister, as he tried to ignore the growing fear in the pit of his stomach. When there was no response from the girl, Adam spoke again, almost begging her to reply. "Sierra, are you alright? Come on, Littlin', talk to me."

It was a few seconds later when Sierra's pain filled voice was heard. "I- I hurt," she whimpered as she desperately tried to quell her threatening tears. The pain in her legs was almost unbearable, making the other pains pale in comparison.

The mournful sound of his sister's voice told Adam more than even her words did. She was close to tears. Sierra never cried over anything. He supposed that was what came of being raised by a father and three older brothers. She was tough for a girl; maybe even tougher than some boys. The tears in her voice scared Adam when he realized that their fear wasn't unfounded. She was hurt and she was hurt bad.

It seemed like hours before Sierra felt her oldest brother's warm touch on her shoulder and she realized how dreadfully cold she was. Thankfully, the rain had stopped, though she wasn't exactly sure how long ago it had, her mind having been occupied by other things.

"Sierra, where are you hurt?" Adam reached deep in the waterproof pocket inside his slicker and pulled out a box of matches. Night had fallen thick and black around them, making it almost impossible to see anything. Adam quickly lit a match, mentally cursing himself for not having had the forethought to bring a lantern with them when they had left the house that morning. Blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the brightness of the flame, Adam bent to study his sister's features. Her eyes were squeezed closed tightly and she was biting her lower lip in an attempt to fight off her obvious pain. The paleness of her face told him that he had been right in assuming that she was badly injured. Obviously the slicker hadn't done its job as he took in the dampness of her clothes and skin. Her hands were clenched into tight fists at her sides. Besides some minor cuts and scrapes, at first glance Adam saw nothing majorly wrong with her. Then he reached her lower body and saw the cause of her pain just as she managed to whisper an answer to his question.

"My legs," was her quiet reply. The tree had landed across her legs and was effectively pinning her to the muddy ground. The match between his fingers burned low and he blew it out, quickly lighting another one. Careful not cause Sierra any more pain, Adam surveyed the tree as well as the damage it had done. Luckily the portion that was pinning her legs was smaller than its huge trunk but it was still large enough to cause a great deal of damage.

But, that was only one problem. The biggest one at the moment was how he was going to move the tree off of her. There was no way that he could move it by himself. He didn't have the right tools and even if he did, the quickest way to get her out from under the tree was to prop it up enough so she could slide out from underneath it. A quick glance at Sierra's face told him that she wasn't going to move anywhere without help. But he couldn't raise the tree, and pull her out at the same time, without possibly injuring her even more. He was going to have to go for help.

Adam swallowed hard and looked down at his little sister's face. This was by the far the hardest thing he had ever had to do; ride off and leave her lying there injured under the tree. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Adam bent down to gently stroke her face. "Sierra," he started, "I've got to go back to the house and get help."

Her eyelids fluttered open and her pain filled emerald eyes met his dark brown ones. She saw how much he hated to leave her lying there but knew there was nothing else he could do. Despite the intensity of her pain, Sierra forced a small smile on her pale face and managed to hide her fears from him. "Don't worry; I'm not going nowhere." She saw the corners of his mouth turn up slightly at her purposeful misuse of grammar.

Adam knew what she was trying to do and his heart hurt at the thought of the pain that he knew she was feeling. He bent and gently kissed her damp forehead as he pushed the stray bits of brown hair away from her face. "I'll be right back. I promise," he told her softly.

Sierra swallowed hard and nodded slightly before she heard his footsteps retreating as rapidly as was possible in the darkness.

END FLASHBACK

-/-/-/-/-/-

Moaning from the bed brought Adam's mind back to the present.

"Adam! No, Adam, don't leave me! Please don't leave me!" Sierra yelled as she writhed unconsciously on the narrow cot. Hoss and Joe jolted up from where they had perched themselves on by the fireplace and came to stand behind Adam.

"It's alright, Sierra," he said softly, as he leaned forward in his chair and touched her feverish forehead with one hand and laid the other one on her shoulder.

For a moment, Sierra's eyes flew open and her glazed over green eyes struggled to meet her oldest brother's dark ones while her hand weakly reached up to grip the strong hand resting on her shoulder before a rough bout of coughing occupied all of her little strength.

"I'm not going anywhere, Littlin'," Adam assured her and stroked her forehead, as she battled against the coughing to draw in a breath.

"Ad…am… I… ca…n't… brea…the," Sierra gasped in between her coughs.

Gently, Adam raised her up into a sitting position and began firmly rubbing her back in an effort to ease her coughing. Cold fingers of worry gripped Adam's heart as he listened to the intensity of her coughing; it seemed to him as if it would break the girl in two.

Finally Sierra's coughing ended and she collapsed weakly against her oldest brother's chest, her heavy breathing creating a loud rattle and wheezing sound deep within her chest. Adam held her tightly, wishing that there was some way he could take the discomfort from her.

"Adam, don't leave me," Sierra whimpered quietly.

"Don't you worry, littlin'," Adam assured her, though he knew that she could not hear him because of her high fever. "I'm not going anywhere." Gently as possible, Adam slid onto the cot behind her and pulled her into his arms. She seemed more comfortable propped up and he couldn't help but smile as she snuggled up against him just like she always did. Sierra had told him once before, that his hugs always made her feel as though everything around her was all right. Adam rested his chin thoughtfully on the top of her head as he pondered why that was. Maybe it was because of the fact that her mother had died when she was so young. Pa had retreated to his room in depression which had left seventeen year old Adam with three children to take care of.

At eleven, Hoss had tried his best to help, Adam remembered, but he had been trying to deal with his own grief. And the fact that Little Joe and Sierra were too little to fully comprehend why their mother wasn't there, was often too much for his tender little heart. Little Joe had flatly refused to be parted from his older brothers, which often made Adam's chores twice as hard, as the boy usually comforted himself by latching onto his eldest brother's leg. Baby Sierra had barely been a year old and far too young to understand anything other than the fact that she wanted her mother and her mother wasn't coming. Adam could remember many sleepless nights he had spent walking the floor with the screaming baby girl, desperately praying that she would fall asleep, while silently wanting to cry right along with her. It was during that time that Adam had found himself developing a special relationship with his little sister.

When Pa had finally come to his senses and reconciled himself with the rest of the family, he found that Sierra would settle for no one but Adam. Even now, Adam was the one who in her opinion could fix everything. Though he was often even harder on her in his punishments than Pa was, Sierra knew she could usually count on him not to tell Pa any more than was necessary, especially if he had already punished her himself.

A sad smile found its way to Adam's face as memories flooded into his mind. His dark eyes surveyed the fire lit room. Joe and Hoss were seated at the table; Hoss snoring loudly with his head resting on the table and Joe carefully whittling on a stick of wood. Slowly Adam shifted his position on the cot, causing Sierra to stir and whimper softly in her sleep.

"Sh, it's all right, littlin'. I'm right here," Adam whispered to her softly as he gently rubbed her back in small circles. He felt her once again settle against him as he quietly began to sing the memory-filled lyrics of the song that Marie had sung numerous times as a lullaby.

"BACKWARD, turn backward, O Time, in your flight,  
Make me a child again just for to-night!  
Mother, come back from the echoless shore,  
Take me again to your heart as of yore;  
Kiss from my forehead the furrows of care,  
Smooth the few silver threads out of my hair;  
Over my slumbers your loving watch keep;—  
Rock me to sleep, mother,—rock me to sleep."

-/-/-/-/-/-

**Well, Sierra is really sick and Adam is refusing to allow his brothers to help tend to her. That can only end in one way, a bad one. How did you like the little flashback from Sierra's accident? I know that a few of you have been curious about that. I'll continue it a little more in a later chapter and maybe I'll try it from another brother's point of view. **

**Don't forget to review and let me know your thoughts and suggestions! And here's the question for this chapter: If one of the Cartwrights were to marry, which one do you think it would be and what would their spouse be like?**

**I can't wait to read your thoughts and go have an awesome day/night!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Yay! Two chapters this week! I guess this is my way of making up for not updating for a month. **

**Anyway thanks again to everyone who reviewed and read my last chapter! Ya'll are amazing! Each of your reviews just make my day! **

**And now, on to the next chapter! **

**-/-/-/-/-/-/-**

Chapter 7

Several days passed and Sierra's fever still ranged dangerously high at times, and often she cried out in her sleep. Usually it was Adam she was calling for and every time Adam would softly reassure her that he was right beside her. His words always seemed to have a calming effect on her.

Still, Adam refused to allow either Hoss or Joe to help him tend to Sierra. He refused to sleep and would not eat despite all of his brothers' attempts to persuade him otherwise. Though neither Hoss nor Joe voiced their worries to each other both saw the growing concern on the other's face. Deep wrinkles creased his brow and dark circles had formed under his eyes showing his lack of sleep.

Determined that something needed to be done about Adam's stubbornness, Joe cornered Hoss one night as they finished up the chores in the tiny barn.

"Hoss, we've got to do something about Adam," he told his brother firmly.

"Joe, we've tried everythin' we kin think of 'sides usin' force an' he's still refusin' to budge from her side," Hoss reminded him.

"Well, I wasn't thinkin' on usin' force exactly," Joe said. Hoss narrowed his eyes at his younger brother. The look on Joe's face was one he had seen many times before and it always meant one thing: Joe had a plan.

"What exactly was you thinkin' on usin' then?" he wondered suspiciously.

"This," was Joe's reply as he pulled a brown glass bottle from behind his back and held it out, allowing Hoss to read the label. Hoss' eyes widened as he realized what Joe had in mind.

"Joe, that's used to put people to sleep! We cain't use that!" he exclaimed protest.

"Why not?" Joe asked innocently. "Look it's for his own good. If he continues on the way he is, we're gonna have two sick people in that shack instead of just one."

"But Joe, what about Sierra? What if she gets worse while he's sleepin'?" Hoss wondered. "You 'n' me don't know half as much as Adam does 'bout treatin' illnesses. Besides, he'd never forgive us for usin' that stuff on 'im."

"Who said he had to know? In his mind he would've just collapsed from exhaustion; he wouldn't have to know that we had anything to do with it," Joe replied sneakily. Hoss shook his head.

"Joe, I don't like it," he said firmly. "That's down right dishonest; I don't care if it is for his own good. How would you like it if Adam was to do that to you?" Hoss watched as Joe frowned in consideration of his brother's words. "Well, Joe?" the older Cartwright encouraged after a few minutes of silence.

"I wouldn't like it," Joe admitted. "But, Hoss, if we don't do something he will collapse from exhaustion and it won't be our doin'."

Hoss sighed loudly.

"I know, Joe, I know," he agreed softly. "I just don't know what to do."

"Joe! Hoss! Get in here! Quick!" the two brothers jumped as they heard Adam's call. Within seconds, both Cartwright brothers were hurrying across the yard as fast as their legs could carry them through the thick snowdrifts.

"Adam, what is it? What's wrong?" Joe asked as he burst into the shack just a hair before Hoss.

"Is it Sierra?" Hoss wondered in alarm. Worry filled his heart and he was almost afraid to hear his older brother's answer. Adam was standing by Sierra's cot, facing them as his frame blocked the girl's face from their view. An unreadable expression was on his face.

"Her fever's broken," Adam told them quietly, a small smile finding its way to his lips. Neither Hoss nor Joe had realized that they had been holding their breath until then.

"Yahoo!" Hoss yelled as he grabbed Joe up into a hug.

"Is she awake?" Joe wondered once he had managed to scramble away from Hoss' tight hug with no bones broken. Adam shook his head.

"She's asleep," he replied as he moved aside to allow his brothers to study the sleeping girl's form. Her face was still marked with the same bright red blotches but a peaceful expression had replaced the pained one she had worn for the past week.

Satisfied that Sierra would be just fine, Joe glanced up at his oldest brother. Adam looked more exhausted than Joe had ever seen him look before. There was a pale tint to his face which caused Joe to worry more than before.

"Adam, why don't you go and get some rest?" Joe suggested, resting his hand on his brother's shoulder. "You haven't slept in days; you must be tired."

"Yeah, Adam," Hoss agreed as moved to stand on Adam's other side. "We'll sit with Sierra until she wakes up." Adam studied his brothers and for a moment, both were afraid he would protest. Then he sighed loudly and nodded.

"All right but only for a little while," Adam told them as he trudged slowly across the floor to the bunks on the other side of the fireplace. Within seconds, the sounds of his quiet breathing told both Hoss and Joe that Adam was getting his long needed rest.

-/-/-/-/-/-

A few hours later, Sierra awoke to find Hoss sitting in the chair beside her cot. He didn't notice that she was awake though as his eyes were focused on the leather strips between his fingers that he was firmly braiding. She coughed once to clear her throat which succeeded in catching Hoss' attention. His face lit up and he dropped the leather strands to the floor.

"Hey there, Shortcakes," he said as he leaned forward in his chair. "How you feelin'?"

"Tired," Sierra managed to croak out. Her throat felt considerably dry. "Water."

"You wait right there and I'll get you some," Hoss told her as he stood and hurried around behind the curtain to fetch her water.

When he returned, Joe was with him.

"You sure gave us quite a scare, sis," Joe told her as Hoss lifted her head to allow her a refreshing drink.

"What happened?" Sierra wondered once she had drunk her fill and was once again settled on her pillow.

"You don't remember?" Joe asked surprised.

"I remember Adam grounding me," she said as she scrunched up her face in thought.

"You don't remember going out in the middle of the night during the snowstorm?" Hoss asked her. Sierra shook her head.

"Why would I do that?" she wondered.

"That's what we was hoping you could tell us," Joe replied. "We woke up the next morning and you were gone. It was snowin' really hard and we were afraid we wouldn't be able to find you. Lucky thing you took Phantom with you. If it hadn't been for him, we would've walked right by you."

"I… I don't 'member any of that," Sierra told them.

"Wouldn't expect you to remember that," Hoss told her. "You were feverish when we found you and the fever just kept going higher once we got you back here. You've been a really sick girl for the past week."

"Where's Adam?" Sierra wondered.

"He's resting," Joe told her.

"He's not sick is he?" she asked in alarm.

"Oh no, he's just worn out," Joe assured her with a smile. "Hasn't gotten much sleep in the last few days."

"And speakin' of sleep," Hoss said, "I think it's time we let you get some rest."

"I am tired," Sierra admitted which was followed by a huge yawn. Hoss bent over and kissed her gently on her forehead.

"You go to sleep and we'll be right out there if you need anythin'," he told her. She nodded.

"Have a good sleep, sis," Joe said as he too kissed her. Sierra smiled watched as the two of them left and pulled the curtain closed behind them. When Joe checked on her a few minutes later, he found that she was fast asleep.

-/-/-/-/-

Just after nightfall, Hoss stepped back behind the curtain to check on Sierra. Joe sat at the table where the supper dishes had just been cleared away, setting up the checkerboard he had earlier uncovered from behind the wood box. Adam was still sound asleep on his bunk.

"How is she?" Joe asked Hoss as his older brother joined him at the table.

"Still sleepin'," was Hoss' reply.

"think we should wake her and see if she wants any supper?" Joe wondered. Hoss shook his head.

"Naw, let 'er sleep," he said. "That's' the best thing for her right now." A sly grin came on his face as he glanced up at his younger brother. "'Sides, no one in their right mind would want any of that stuff you fixed."

"Hey, it wasn't that bad!" Joe protested then he let out a small chuckle. "Ok, yeah it was. But that didn't stop you from eatin' it."

"I had to eat somethin' otherwise I'll waste away to nothin'," Hoss defended himself. "Sometimes I wonder whether that'd be a better option though." Joe's smile widened as Hoss chuckled softly.

The two brothers settled down to their game in relative silence that was occasionally broken by Hoss' accusations of Joe cheating and Joe's protests otherwise.

"Sierra!" Adam's frantic call startled both of the brothers and immediately drew their attention towards the bunk where their oldest brother lay, thrashing madly around on the bed. Hoss and Joe jumped to their feet and hurried the short distance over to Adam's side; Hoss reaching him just a hair before Joe.

"Adam, wake up, you're having a bad dream," Joe said, though the sight of his eldest brother's deathly pale skin told him that there was more wrong with Adam than just a simple bad dream. Hoss too noticed the paleness and moved his hand to test the temperature of their brother's forehead.

"Joe, he's burning up!" Hoss exclaimed to his younger brother who was standing worriedly behind him. "Adam, Adam, can ya hear me? Adam, everythin's all right, brother," Hoss told him softly as he gently tried to calm his older brother. Adam, however, continued to thrash around on the bed despite Hoss' attempts to quiet him.

"No! Sierra! Need help!" Adam called out unconsciously.

"Adam, Sierra's all right," Joe tried to assure him, but Adam refused to calm.

"No! She's hurt! I gotta get help!" Adam again insisted.

"Hoss? Joe?" Both brothers heard Sierra's worried call from the other side of the room. Quickly, Joe moved across the room and stepped behind the curtain. Sierra was half sitting up on her cot, obvious having been awakened by Adam's delirious calls.

"What are you doing sitting up? You'd better lay back down," Joe told her. "You don't want to get sick again, do you?"

"Joe, what's the matter with Adam?" Sierra asked as Joe began trying to pull the covers back up around her while trying to make her lie back down on the cot.

"He's just got a little fever, sis," Joe replied. "He's gonna be just fine. Now come on and lie back down so I can tuck you back in." Still Sierra refused to lie down.

"He was calling for me," Sierra said.

"He's got a fever, sis. He doesn't know what he's sayin'," Joe told her. From the other side of the curtain, both siblings heard Adam's frantic voice followed by Hoss' quiet one.

"Joe, I gotta go to him," Sierra looked her older brother straight in the eye as she spoke with what she hoped was firmness.

"You're not going anywhere," Joe said with a firmness of his own in his voice.

"Joe, I have to," the girl insisted. "He needs me. He'll calm down if I'm near him; I know he will."

Joe was silent for a few minutes as he considered his sister's words. She was right; Adam probably would calm down if she was near him. But Sierra was just recovering from being sick herself. Was it wise to allow her out of bed so soon. When Adam once again called for her, Joe knew that he really had no choice.

"All right, but only for a little while," Joe told her as he gave in. A smile was flashed his direction as Sierra pushed back her covers and climbed out of her bed. "Wrap this around you so that you don't get too cold," Joe said as he removed the top quilt from her cot. It was fairly warm inside the shack but he didn't want to take any chances on her getting sick again.

Sierra held back a gasp as she caught sight of Adam's pale face as he struggled in delirium against Hoss' strong grasp. In all of her fifteen years, Sierra could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times she had seen Adam sick and in bed. When Adam was sick, he always did his best to hide it from everyone else; a habit that unfortunately his younger siblings had also picked up on. The few times that Adam had stayed in bed, he had only found himself there because of Pa's orders.

"What're you doin' out of bed?" Hoss asked, shooting Joe a hard glare as Sierra came to stand beside Adam's bed.

"She insisted on comin'," Joe told his brother as he raised his hands in the air as if in surrender. "She thinks he'll quiet for her."

"Please let me try, Hoss," Sierra begged. With a nod, Hoss stood to his feet allowing her to take his place on the bed beside Adam who was still thrashing around on the bed.

"Sierra!" Adam called out again. Taking a deep breath, Sierra carefully perched herself on the edge of the bed and reached her hand out to meet his hand as it paused secondarily next to the edge of the bed.

"It's all right, Adam. I'm right here," Sierra told him softly as she gently touched his shoulder with her other hand. Instantly, Adam stopped his struggling and lay still on the bed.

"Sierra," Adam whispered quietly as his fingers slowly tightened around his sister's small hand.

"I'm here, Adam," she repeated, blinking back her tears at seeing her oldest brother so sick. "I'm right here." The corners of Adam's mouth turned up slightly as he drew in a deep breath and Sierra felt his muscles relax under her touch.

"Put this on his forehead," Hoss told her as he handed her a cool cloth. Sierra obeyed and almost gasped in surprise when she felt the heat that radiated off of her eldest brother's forehead. She sat there, holding his hand, for a few more minutes until all three of the younger Cartwrights heard Adam's quiet, even breathing indicate that he had fallen asleep.

"Come on, Sis, let's get you back into bed," Joe whispered to his sister. Sierra nodded as she rose to her feet.

Suddenly she felt very weak and dizzy. Whatever strength she'd used to make it over to Adam's bed was now gone. Slowly she took one step and grabbed for the pole of the bunk bed to keep her upright. She still probably would have fallen had it not been for Joe being there to steady her.

"What's wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"I… I'm just a little dizzy," Sierra replied, not looking up at him. Though she did not realize her face had pale drastically, she did know that if she looked up at him, he would be able to read how bad she really felt. All of her brothers usually could tell when she felt bad by looking into her face, a talent that Sierra had found annoying at times.

Knowing why she refused to look at him, Joe gently raised her chin until he was looking her directly in the face. "I knew I shouldn't've allowed you to get up," he said quietly as he took in the sight of his sister's pale face. Without another word, he scooped her up in his arms bridal style and carried her across to her cot. By the time he tucked the covers up around her small frame, Sierra had drifted off to sleep.

-/-/-/-/-

"What are we going to do?" Hoss asked out loud when Joe had joined him at the table. "Sierra's still not completely well and now Adam's sick too."

"You think it's the measles?" Joe wondered, glancing over at Adam's sleeping figure on the bottom bunk.

"Don't know what else it would be," Hoss replied. Both brothers were silent for a moment. They knew how dangerous measles could be to adults.

"Maybe I should ride for the doctor," Joe suggested.

"Joe, there's gotta be three feet of snow out there and from the looks of the sky more could fall any minute," Hoss pointed out. "Besides, even if you did get there, it's at least a four day ride there and back if you ride straight. By that time both of them could be better."

"Well then what can we do?" Joe asked impatiently. Hoss was quiet for a moment.

"I reckon all we can do is pray," he replied softly. "Sierra came through it alright."

Neither brother spoke for awhile as they sat staring into the flames dancing in the fireplace, each thinking their own thoughts, though their worry for Adam was at the forefront of their minds. Adam was rarely ever sick and if he was, he never stayed in bed unless Pa forced him to. And never had he been this sick before. The mere sight of their strong older brother lying there pale and delirious was enough to send fear into their hearts.

Measles. That was another thing that sent chills down their spines. Countless numbers of newspapers had been read about entire towns where the disease had hit, wiping out nearly half of their population. Children usually recovered without problems, though there were rare instances otherwise. It was the adults that it hit the hardest. Adults died from the disease and those that did survive were often left with disabilities for the rest of their life.

Would Adam be able to fight off this disease? And if he did, would he be left disabled? "Oh please, God," Joe prayed silently as he fought back his tears at the thought of his strong eldest brother forced to be anything less or the even worse thought of life without him. "Please bring him through this. Please let him be ok."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

**Oh no! Not only is Sierra still not well, but Adam is now sick too! And with the weather bad outside, neither of them can go for the doctor. What are Hoss and Joe going to? **

**Be sure to tell me your thoughts in your reviews! **

**And now for the question: I only got one response to the last chapter's question so please, guys, let me hear your thoughts on this one! If one of the Cartwrights were to get married, how many kids would you imagine them having and what would their names be?**

**All right, now, go leave me a review and answer my question! Oh, and don't forget to have an awesome day/night! ;-) ;-P 3**


	8. Chapter 8

**Ok so here's the next chapter! I think y'all are really going to like this one! Not only is it long (11 pages!) but it also tells the rest of the story of Sierra's accident. Actually, most of this chapter is a flashback. **

**Also, there will probably only be one more chapter to this story after this one! I do have an idea for the next story, but it will probably be a few weeks until its up as I'd like to get a good start on it before I start posting chapters and I haven't even starting writing it yet. Well, I have in my head, but all you fellow writers out there know how difficult it can be to get something from your head to the computer screen!**

**Anyway, Thanks again to everyone who reviewed and answered the chapter question and also to those didn't! In case you haven't figured it out yet, those questions that I have been asking do have something to do with the next story so if you didn't answer them, make sure you go back and do so!**

**All right, enough of my rambling! On to the next chapter!**

-/-/-/-/-/-

Chapter 8

-FLASHBACK-

The thunderous sound of hoof beats rang through air. The young man crouched low against the horse's sweaty neck as it raced through the trees in the dim light. By now, the moon had risen, its light allowing the young man to push his horse to a faster pace. The forest was quiet of all other sounds, but the young man didn't notice.

"Please let her be all right," he repeated his whispered prayer over and over under his breath.

As the welcomed sight of the ranch house came into view, the horse slowed its pace slightly. But it's young rider would have none of it; roughly, he urged the horse faster, refusing to let the horse slow until he pulled him to a halt in front of the house. Without stopping to take the time to tether his horse to the hitching post, the young man jumped down from the saddle and sprinted into the house, bursting through the door with a loud 'bang' as it was thrown open with such force that it hit the credenza behind it.

"Adam! How many times do I have to tell you boys not to burst through the door like that?" An older gray haired man had jumped to his feet at the loud noise and was now sternly glaring at the young man who stood almost level with his own height.

Across the room at the neatly set dining table, two younger boys were watching this scene unfold. They too had been startled by their older brother's sudden entry.

The older boy's eyes were wide with fear and it was obvious that something was wrong. He paid no attention to his two younger brothers, only his father mattered. Finding that he was out of breath, he clutched the back of the upholstered sofa with his hands as he bent his head, drawing in deep breaths.

Realizing that something was seriously wromg, his father crossed the short space to where Adam stood.

"What's wrong, Adam?" he asked. "Adam, where's your sister?"

"She's hurt, Pa," Adam finally managed to say.

"Where is she?" his father repeated, his voice taking on a more anxious tone. Both of the younger boys joined their father and older brother, though neither one seemed to notice the movement.

"She's pinned under a tree about five miles from here," Adam answered. "I couldn't get her out, Pa! I tried, but the tree was too big!"

"Joe, go to the bunkhouse and round up the men and send one of them into town for the doctor! Hoss, go gather everything we might need! And Hoss, hitch up a wagon while you're at it," Ben said as he took charge of the situation. Then he turned back to Adam as the two boys rushed from the house to carry out their assigned jobs.

"Oh, Pa, it's all my fault! Why didn't I keep a closer eye on her? Why didn't I make sure she was right behind me?" The young man was close to tears as he spoke his thoughts out loud.

"Adam... Adam, look at me," his father told him firmly and waited until the teenager had obeyed his order.

"We are going to get your sister out. It wasn't your fault."

"But, you don't understand..." Adam protested but he was cut off by Joe's rushed entry.

"Pa, everything's ready," Joe announced. "Hoss has got the wagon waiting for you outside."

"Thank you, Joseph," his father said before turning back to Adam. "Don't worry, we'll get her out. Everything's going to be all right."

-END of FLASHBACK-

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

"How is he, Hoss?" Joe asked his older brother as the larger man sat beside Adam's bed, keeping cool cloths on their oldest brother's feverish brow.

"Fever's still high," Hoss told him, a worried expression on his face. "Think it might be gettin' higher."

Just then, Adam moaned softly from the bed and began to toss and turn, his moaning gradually growing louder. The red blotches stood out, angry and bright, against the frightening whiteness of his skin. His moaning was interrupted only by his coughing, but was immediately resumed afterwards.

"How's Sierra?" Hoss wondered.

"She's sleeping," Joe replied. "She's got a fever, but it doesn't seem to be getting' any higher."

Hoss nodded, but both of their attentions were drawn back to the bed, as Adam's moans turned to frightened cries.

"Sierra! Sierra's hurt! Got to get help!" Adam's voice rose as his cries turned into anguished pleas.

After carefully wringing out the cloth in the basin of cool water that had been placed on the chair next to him,

Hoss began gently sponging Adam's burning forehead.

"No, no!" Adam yelled as he continued to thrash around on the bed. "It's my fault. My fault!"

"What's he talkin' about?" Joe wondered.

Hoss shrugged his broad shoulders.

"Don't know. He's been doin' this off and on every so often," Hoss explained. "He seems to be lost in a nightmare of some kind."

As he talked, he continued to sponge the cool water onto his brother's forehead. Gradually Adam's cries began to quiet and he soon drifted off into a restless sleep.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

-FLASHBACK-

"When I say go, everybody pull and, Joe, you get her out from under there!" Ben Cartwright ordered his sons and the many ranch hands that had joined them.

It had taken a few hours to hack away enough of the tree so that they were able to tie a rope around it in the hope of lifting it enough to slide Sierra out from under it. She had been unconscious by the time they had reached her and she still had not regained consciousness yet.

"All right, now, everybody ready?" There was a murmur of agreement from the men at Ben's question. "You ready, Joseph?"

"Ready, Pa!" Joe called back as he took his position next to his sister's still form.

"All right then, let's go!" Ben yelled, as he and the others gripped the rope tightly and began to pull with all of their might.

Joe watched as the tree's trunk began to lift slowly, inch by inch, until there was enough space for his sister's small form to slip through. Quickly and as carefully as possible, Joe grabbed Sierra just under her shoulders and dragged her backwards, stopping when she was safely out of the tree's reach.

"I got 'er, Pa!" Joe called out as he dropped to the ground beside her.

It took only seconds before the other three Cartwrights joined Joe as he knelt beside Sierra's unconscious form.

"Sierra, honey, can you hear me?" Ben asked anxiously as he stared in shock at the visible damage that had been done by the fallen tree.

"She's still unconscious, Pa," Joe said softly.

"I know," Ben replied, before turning to look at Hoss who was gently examining his little sister's injuries. It was obvious to everyone that both of her legs were broken from the twisted way they lay. Blood was begining to stain the dirt around her legs a dark red color. "Are they as bad as they look?" Ben wondered, though deep down inside, he dreaded hearing the answer that he already knew.

Hoss glanced up, his expression only confirming his father's greatest fears. He had removed his handkerchief from his pocket and was now trying to quell the bleeding.

"They're both broken," he said quietly.

"How bad do you think?" Ben asked.

"It's bad, Pa," the larger boy answered.

Ben nodded. "Does she seem hurt anywhere else?" he asked.

"She's got a few cuts here and there from the branches, but I don't think those are too serious," Hoss replied.

"We've got to get her home," Ben told his sons. "The doctor's probably there by now. Joe, I want you to go find some long sticks that we can use to splint her legs with. Adam, go get the wagon ready for her and bring it as close as you can.

Joe nodded and scrambled off to do what he was asked, but Adam didn't. He sat there staring down in shock at his sister's injuries. Realizing that Adam hadn't moved, Ben looked up him and spoke again.

"Adam, Adam!" His father's voice rose the second time in an effort to gain his son's attention.

With a start, Adam forced his eyes away from his sister and up to his father's face.

"Adam, I need you to go make sure the wagon's ready and bring it as close as you can," Ben repeated gently, though his voice was still firm.

With a nod, Adam rose to his feet as if in a daze and began making his way back to where they had left the wagon.

"You want me to help him?" Hoss asked his father. It was obvious that his oldest brother wasn't his strong, stoic self. Both Ben and Hoss had seen in his dark eyes the guilt that was beginning to haunt him. Hoss knew

Adam could ready the wagon by himself, but he was concerned that Adam might need help emotionally more than physically.

Ben shook his head. "The hands are there if he needs help," he replied. He met Hoss' blue eyes and gave him a soft look that told his son that he knew Hoss' thoughts. "He'll be fine, Hoss."

-END of FLASHBACK-

-/-/-/-/-

The little shack was quiet when Sierra awoke. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw Joe sitting in the chair next to her cot, fast asleep. Once her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she carefully studied her brother's face. In the dim light, she could make out the dark circles under his eyes that indicated his lack of sleep. His normally unruly curls were tangled and even more wild, as if it had been days since he'd last combed them. But, what startled her the most was the amount of facial hair that covered his face. Unlike his eldest brother, Joe did not have the need to shave every day and it usually took several days before it looked as if he needed to. Judging from the amount of growth on his face, Sierra knew she must have been sick for a while.

As she listened carefully, she realized that what she thought before as a quiet shack, was really not very quiet after all. Beside her, Joe snored softly and moaned in his sleep. From the other side of the curtain that separated her cot from the rest of the room, Hoss' usual loud and echoing snores were heard. But there was another sound. Sierra listened for a minute as she tried to identify it. Maybe it was Adam. No, Adam was usually a quiet sleeper; he rarely ever made noises in his sleep.

Then she remembered, Adam had been sick too. Fear coursed through her veins as she recalled the earlier image of her eldest brother, usually strong and in-control, lying in bed as he thrashed about being controlled by the high fever that plagued his mind. Was he still so sick? Had his fever broken yet? She had to see him.

Quietly, Sierra slid out from under the covers of her bed. A wave of cold hit her and she shivered involuntarily as she silently on buckled her leg brace. Grabbing a quilt from her cot to wrap around herself, she pushed the curtain back and tiptoed across to the bed where Adam lay. He was asleep, but he was muttering something unrecognizable under his breath. Tentatively, Sierra placed her hand on Adam's forehead. He was still warm, but he was definitely cooler than last time.

At her touch, he grew silent and his breathing evened out to a gentle pace. Tears filled Sierra's eyes, as she watched her eldest brother calmly sleeping. It was her fault that he was sick. If she hadn't tried to deceive him by going to the Paiute village, she wouldn't have gotten sick, and then neither would he.

"Hoss would've understood and he wouldn't have grounded me. Oh why did Adam have to be so bossy? Know it all Adam; he always has to be right! I wish he would've stayed home! If only I could have a few weeks without Adam around to correct me at every turn!"

She had been so angry with him, and now it looked as if she would get her wish.

"Oh Adam, I'm so sorry," Sierra whispered as she blinked back the tears that threatened to fall.

Quietly, she knelt down beside her brother's bed. From this position, she had a better view of how sick Adam still looked. "I didn't mean it, Adam. Honestly I didn't. I was just so angry with you. I do need you. You've got to get better soon! I love you so much!"

With that last whispered plea, Sierra buried her face in the blankets by her brother's side and lost the battle with her tears.

-/-/-/-/-/-

-FLASHBACK-

"I set the bones the best that I could," Dr Martin told four Cartwright men as he reached the bottom of the stairs. "I'm sure that you already know that they were pretty bad breaks; compound fractures," he said and all of them nodded. After a careful examination, the doctor had told them that he would have to operate in order to be sure that the bones were set right.

"How is she?" Ben asked.

"She's sleeping right now and likely to stay that way for a while," the doctor replied. "I gave her some laudanum to help with the pain. I'll leave you some extra for when she wakes up; I'd like to keep her pretty sedated for a little while. Keep her absolutely still, especially her legs. Don't let her move them at all."

Each of the Cartwrights nodded in understanding.

"Thank you for coming out here, doctor," Ben said as he led the way to the door.

"Ben," Dr Martin said quietly to gain his attention and motioned with his head towards outside. Puzzled, Ben followed his old friend outside, shutting the door behind them. "Didn't want to say anything in front of the boys," the doctor said. "Ben, I'm not sure that you understand how bad the breaks were." He paused long enough to take in Ben's worried expression. "Her left leg was broken in three places. Hopefully that one will heal without any problems," the doctor told him. "Her right leg was broken in two places."

Ben was silent. Something told him that the doctor hadn't gotten to the worst part yet.

"There must have been a rock or something under her right knee when the tree fell," the doctor surmised.

"Ben, her right knee was crushed."

Shock registered on Ben's face as the doctor's words sank in.

"It will heal though, right doctor?" Ben asked hopefully, though deep down he feared the answer.

The doctor placed a hand on his shoulder. "I can't answer that, Ben," he replied. "That's why I had to operate; I set the bone fragments as best I could, but only time will tell if it will work."

"Will... Will this affect her ability to... to walk?" Ben asked.

"I'm going to be honest with you, Ben," Dr Martin said. "I have seen many breaks like that. Usually the bones heal up but the joint is always weak from the break. Some have been able to use crutches but many haven't been so lucky."

"So you're telling me that my daughter will never walk on her own again?" Ben asked, his voice filled with grief.

"No, everyone is different. I'm just telling you what I have seen happen before," the doctor replied. "There's a doctor I've heard about in Chicago, a Dr Saul I believe his name is, who has been doing experiments with breaks of this nature. I've heard that with a certain operation, the patient is able to walk with a leg brace. They are usually left with limps, but at least they are walking."

"Are you certain that the break will not heal right?" the older Cartwright asked.

The doctor hesitated. "Nothing is certain in my field, Ben," he replied. "I've seen patients pull though things when I wouldn't have given them a chance. There is a slight possibility that it could, but it's very slight."

"Do you think you could get in touch with that doctor and find out more about that operation?" Ben wondered.

Dr Martin nodded. "Sure can; I'll send out a telegram when I get back to town and ask him to send us more information," he told him.

"Thank you, doctor," Ben said as he offered a small smile and reached out his hand.

"Remember, keep her as still as possible and watch her for a fever," the doctor said as he shook Ben's outstretched hand before climbing into his buggy. "She may run a fever, but if it gets too high, send one of the boys for me immediately. I'll be back tomorrow to check on her."

Ben nodded as the doctor slapped his reins on the horse's back and soon the buggy had disappeared from the yard.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Weeks passed and Sierra's breaks began to heal slowly. Just as the doctor had said, Sierra had run a low fever for a few days, but it never rose very high. It soon became obvious that the doctor had been right in his diagnoses; the bone fragments in her knee were not healing right.

Ben was grateful when Mrs Shaunessey had offered to come out and stay with Sierra during the daytime. With both of her legs injured and in casts, there was no way that Sierra could be left by herself. He and the boys had been taking turns staying home with her for the first couple of weeks, while she had the fever, but there were some things that she just needed a woman's help with.

By the end of the sixth week, Sierra was fit to be tied. She had been laid up in her bed for weeks, and the walls of her bedroom were beginning to smother her. Her legs throbbed almost constantly and at times the pain became almost unbearable; still she fought her hardest to hide the tears and whatever pain there was from her family. None of them were fooled for a minute though. She had taken to snapping at whoever happened to come in to check on her, though they knew it was only partly because she was tired of being cooped up inside. She missed riding, she missed the fresh air and sunshine, and she even missed doing chores! That being said, when Dr Martin had suggested getting her a wheelchair, Sierra had been ready to jump at the idea if it meant she'd be able to get out of bed.

Since it was near impossible for the wheelchair to get upstairs, Hoss carried Sierra downstairs and the others set about moving her things into the little bedroom off of the dining room. When the doctor arrived with the chair, Sierra firmly shooed all of her family from the room, only allowing Mrs. Shaunessey and Dr Martin to remain to help her into the chair. With a proud smile on her face, Sierra wheeled herself out into the living room where her father and brothers were waiting.

Ben forced a smile on his face at his daughter's excitement, but inside, he was filled with sadness. Dr. Martin had removed the casts from her legs a week ago and after careful examination, he had grimly confirmed Ben's greatest fear; his lively, fun-loving little girl was now confined to a wheelchair. Never again would he see her racing across the fields on horseback; never again would she be able to freely walk through the door. He remembered all the times he had scolded her for running either up or down the stairs; now he would give anything to see her able to do just that.

Dr Martin's words echoed in his mind. True to his word, the doctor had telegraphed the doctor in Chicago who had quickly responded with all of the necessary information concerning the required operation. Ben had read the information but he had yet to make any further moves. In a way, he had still been hoping for a miracle of some kind; hoping that maybe Dr Martin had been wrong. Now, seeing his daughter wheel around the floor of the room, the reality began to sink in and Ben knew that her only hope of ever being able to walk again was in Chicago.

-/-/-/-/-

Arrangements were made for the operation and train tickets were purchased for the week following week. Ben had asked Mrs. Shaunessey to accompany him and Sierra to Chicago and she had readily agreed. The boys however would have to remain at the Ponderosa and continue on with the day to day operations of the ranch.

Hoss and Joe were disappointed at being left on the ranch, but they both understood that it made sense for them to stay. Adam on the other hand hadn't commented either way. In fact, he hadn't said much of anything since the night of the accident. During the first few days, he had paid his sister several short visits, but those soon became few and far between. He hated seeing her in bed, her broken legs stretched out in front of her, which in his mind was a constant reminder of how he had failed to look out for her. Soon he began to withdraw himself from all of them, the horses becoming his only companions.

Sierra had seen the self placed guilt in her eldest brother's dark eyes. She had seen the flash of raw emotion on his face as she had emerged from the room in the wheel chair. It had hurt her when he had turned a moment later and stalked out the door and into the ranch yard. She knew why he refused to come and see her, and when he did, he made sure he was never alone and only stayed a few minutes. She longed to tell him that her accident wasn't his fault; that it was just that, an accident. Sierra wished that there was some way to convince Adam of that. She missed her older brother's company, his quiet reassurance that everything was all right. She had to admit that she even missed him bossing her around and correcting her on her every move.

It came as no surprise to her that Adam was blaming himself. That was what he always did when one of his younger siblings got hurt. One thing that she did not understand was why Adam always blamed himself. Maybe it was part of being the oldest, she thought. But why was he blaming himself now? It wasn't like he had pushed the tree down on top of her. There was nothing he could have done to prevent it from happening.

It wasn't until late the night before she and Ben were due to leave on the train that she got a chance to really talk to Adam. Just past midnight, Sierra had woken up with terrible cramps in her leg. Unable to sleep, she had decided that she was thirsty. By now she had mastered the art of sliding herself off of her bed and into her wheelchair. Quietly, she wheeled herself to the bedroom door and pushed it open, stopping short at what she saw. Adam was sitting in his favorite blue chair by the fireplace, his head buried in his hands. Though, she couldn't see his face, Sierra realized with a start that he was crying. The soft sound of his sobs, tore her heart in two. Adam never cried. He was the one who hid his emotions best.

Her thirst suddenly forgotten, Sierra wheeled herself as silently as possible over to her oldest brother. When she was beside him, she reached her hand out and gently rested her hand on his shaking shoulder.

With a start, Adam jerked his head up and whirled to find his little sister next to him. Shock was written all over his tear-stained face.

"Wha… What are you doing up?" he asked, as he turned away from her and tried to hide the fact that he had been caught crying.

"Couldn't sleep; so I decided to get a drink," Sierra answered. "What's wrong, Adam?"

"Nothing's wrong," her brother replied sternly.

"Adam, you were crying," Sierra reminded him gently.

"I was not," Adam told her, his voice low and stern.

"You were too, Adam Cartwright, and don't you deny it!" Sierra felt her temper rising and she desperately fought to stay in control of it. "Come on, Adam, you can tell me."

Adam sighed. "It was my fault," he said softly, so softly that Sierra barely made out his words. His face was turned away from her as he stared into the fire.

Something told her that he wasn't finished talking and she wisely stayed quiet. Carefully, she studied him, as she waited for him to continue.

"If I had only made sure you were behind me, I might cold have prevented that from happening."

"No, Adam," Sierra broke in. "There's nothing you could've done to prevent it. What would've probably happened is that you would've gotten pinned under the tree instead of me."

"I'd give anything if only it had been me instead," her brother whispered.

Sierra had heard enough. He wasn't just feeling sorry for her; he was feeling sorry for himself.

"Well, I'm glad it wasn't you," she told him fiercely.

Adam turned to face her in surprise. "What?" he asked.

"I'm glad it wasn't you," she repeated a little louder, then she softened her voice. "Think about it, Adam. Think about what would've happened if it had been you under that tree."

Adam was silent.

"I'll tell you," Sierra continued. "If you had been under the tree; it would be you that would be hurt instead of me. You wouldn't be able to ride out to mend the fences or to round up cattle, or to break horses. Adam, Pa needs you; Hoss needs you and as much as the two of you fight, Joe needs you too. None of them could run this ranch as well without you. You're Pa's right hand man. If you had gotten hurt, there would be no one to take over your jobs who could do them they way you do." She paused and studied Adam's expression before continuing. "As much as I like to brag about how much I do around here, I know that there's nothing that I do that any one of you couldn't do as good if not better. You were doing them before I even came along."

Adam was quiet as he pondered his sister's words. She was right and he knew it. But that still didn't change the fact that she had gotten hurt. With all his heart, he wished he could take her pain away.

As she could read his thoughts, Sierra laid her hand on his arm. "Please don't blame yourself," she begged him. "Besides, If I hadn't been so stubborn and kept up with you like you told me too, then I may have been spared. I'm stubborn just like you remember. Just as stubborn to keep trying to get better, too. Please Adam, I've missed you so much these last few weeks... I need you." With that, tears began to fill her eyes.

Raising his eyes to meet her tear-filled ones, Adam's heart broke as he realized how much he'd hurt her by staying away. He'd been selfish; thinking only of how he had failed to protect her. He hadn't seen how much pain he causing her by his actions. She needed him; she needed his strength, his encouragement, and his comfort.

Gently, Adam wrapped his strong arms around her slim shoulders, allowing her to bury her face in his chest and release all of the pain she had been carrying around. He recalled how he had done that same thing only minutes ago, and now it seemed as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"Sh, it's all right, littlin'," he whispered softly.

-END of FLASHBACK-

-/-/-/-/-/-

"It's all right, littlin'," Adam whispered, jolting Sierra back to the present.

Jerking her head up, she looked into the familiar dark eyes of her eldest brother. Slowly, he moved his hand from where he had rested it on her shoulder to grasp one of her small hands. Blinking back her tears, Sierra placed her other hand on top of Adam's larger one and returned his weak smile.

"Oh, Adam, I was so afraid," she told him softly but he stopped her from saying more.

"I know, I was too," he replied. His heart broke at the sight of her tear stained cheeks, knowing that the tears were for him. It was obvious that she still had not fully recovered from her illness, though the red blotches on her skin were beginning to fade. Gently, he patted the bed beside him. "Come here," he told her.

Gratefully, Sierra crawled into bed beside him, ignoring the stiffness in her knee from kneeling on the floor for so long. Adam wrapped his arm around her thin shoulders and pulled her blanket tightly around her as she snuggled into him, just as she used to do when she was little. There had been many times she had run to Adam's room and snuggled into him for comfort after she had been awaken by a bad dream. Now was no different; a smile settled on her face as she relished in the feeling of protection that her eldest brother always gave her.

The smiles were still on their faces when Hoss and Joe discovered them later; Adam with his arm still wrapped protectively around his little sister as she snuggled up next to him.

Slowly and silently, Joe placed his hand on his big brothers shoulders, feeling the warmth and relief of Hoss' wide smile tingle with their connection. Adam and Sierra were both going to be all right.

-/-/-/-/-/-

**Adam and Sierra are going to be all right! Yay! But what about the Paiutes? Has Little Fawn recovered? And don't forget about the horse. Do you think that Adam will give in to Sierra and let her have it? **

**Don't forget to leave your thoughts in the review section and answer this question: How do you think the other Cartwrights would react if one of them were to get engaged/married? Would they be for it or against it? Why?**


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